


the wonwoo book of world records

by Anonymous



Series: like in the movies [2]
Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Fluff, Future Fic, Little bit of angst, M/M, but mostly unrepentant fluff, sort of enemies to lovers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-24
Updated: 2019-03-29
Packaged: 2019-11-29 10:10:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 21,447
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18221717
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/
Summary: Wonwoo meets a guy who once made life hell for him back in college. From then on, nothing makes sense.





	1. Chapter 1

**\- I -**

Wonwoo can’t really believe what he’s seeing right now. A veritable relic from his past is just sitting there. Like it’s nothing. Or like Wonwoo has been unceremoniously thrown backwards in time or into some kind of incredibly lucid dream. Wonwoo pinches himself for good measure, but no, that’s still definitely Kim Mingyu sitting in the corner of the cafe by himself.

The same Kim Mingyu who disappeared so suddenly years ago, without a single trace.

It’s so unmistakably him. The same olive-skinned guy, still marked by the same charming boyishness that had made him so popular with everyone. Not that Wonwoo finds him all that charming himself. He’s merely repeating in his head what was only too often used to describe Mingyu back in the day.

The point is: there is no mistaking that face.

Mingyu’s fingers are wrapped around a drink, which probably isn’t all too surprising since they are, after all, in a cafe. It must be an iced Americano — if his preferences haven’t changed since then.

Not that Wonwoo has ever paid any mind at all to his likes or dislikes, it clearly looks like an Americano anyway.

His fingers drum the table in front of him. Wonwoo’s still waiting for that cake he ordered, he can’t just up and leave now. Maybe he should have gone back to his office immediately after all. But then again, why should he?

It’s been so long since Mingyu’s first and only year at Pledis University, he realises. How long has it been? Eight years? Nine?

He thumbs the edge of his phone, tempted to unlock it and shoot Jun a text. But what would he say?

 

_Remember that one kid from our dorm back in Pledis who broke the noise complaint record? No? Ok._

 

Even in his head, it sounds kind of stupid. It’s not that noteworthy and the only other person who would probably remember Mingyu is Jihoon. And Wonwoo doesn’t exactly want to open that can of worms.

Mingyu looks up from his drink then, and oh god, Wonwoo barely manages to duck his head in time, he doesn’t want Mingyu to think he’d been staring. Because he hasn’t.

But when he dares to look again, he catches Mingyu returning the gaze, with an odd, questioning look.

A small smile curves on Mingyu’s face, uncharacteristically unsure, when they make eye contact. Wonwoo freezes, inwardly berating himself — he hasn’t been this awkward around people for years now. He’s a fully-functioning grown-up with a job. He has his own apartment. He’s an adult man now, he even eats whole grains! Trust Kim fucking Mingyu to make him feel like a kid all over again.

“Sorry about the wait,” says the barista from earlier as she places his order in front of him.

Wonwoo feels grateful for the distraction. “That’s okay. Thanks.”

The barista is saying something else. Maybe one of those generic things they’re usually saying to their patrons. He doesn’t know, and would feel bad about it but, as it is, he’s preoccupied with the fact that Mingyu is currently heading in his direction. Walking right towards him.

Wonwoo’s breath quickens as he starts to panic. He doesn’t know why he’s even panicking, he hasn’t done anything wrong. All he came here for was some fucking cake. His eyes dart nervously towards the exit. Should he leave now? Would it look too suspicious?

“Hi.” Mingyu is standing right next to his table before Wonwoo gets the chance to decide.

Wonwoo forces himself not to overreact. Be cool, Jeon Wonwoo, he coaches himself, as he takes a deep breath. You’re an adult. You’ve got this. It happened eight years ago.

“Do we... know each other?” Mingyu’s head tilts to one side. Curious.

Something in Wonwoo’s stomach drops just then, surprise punched right out of him.

Mingyu doesn’t remember him.

He’s tempted to say no. It’d be embarrassing to act as if he does remember. Wonwoo doesn’t want to give Mingyu the satisfaction of thinking he’s particularly memorable or something. Because he’s not. Wonwoo just obviously has the better memory between them.

“We do, don’t we?” Mingyu continues, smiling sheepishly. “I mean you look at me like you recognise me and I don’t — b-but apparently lately I have the memory of goldfish and I swear I’ve seen that exact same look on someone else’s face a while back and uh, I-I didn’t remember her, except she remembered me, and I —”

Mingyu’s going at a mile a minute, syllables almost overlapping into each other with how fast he speaks. It would be adorable if Wonwoo wasn’t so fucking confused.

“I’m not sure,” Wonwoo finally lies, digging his fingers into his thigh. “You... do seem kind of familiar. But I just can’t figure out where I’ve seen you before.”

“Oh,” Mingyu responds, visibly relieved somehow. “I guess we really don’t know each other then.”

Wonwoo tries to smile at that because it’s probably the right thing to do at this point. What else was he supposed to say? What exactly is an adult expected to do in this kind of situation?

“May I know your name just in case?” asks Mingyu. “I don’t know, in case we do know each other? Maybe it might jog my memory.”

“It’s Wonwoo. Jeon Wonwoo.”

Mingyu absently runs his fingers through his hair and shakes his head. “Yeah… I got nothing. Nice name but… Sorry.”

Maybe Mingyu genuinely doesn’t remember him. It would make sense. Wonwoo was probably just another meaningless face from a distant past. He fidgets uncomfortably under Mingyu’s unrelenting gaze and seriously debates asking the barista to pack his cake instead, very sorry, but he’s got to run when Mingyu makes a weird noise in the back of his throat. Wonwoo looks up at that.

“You know, it’s weird,” Mingyu blurts out.

“What’s weird?” asks Wonwoo.

“I don’t think I could ever forget a face like yours,” Mingyu rushes, words rushing into each other again. “You’re literally the most beautiful person I’ve ever seen.”

Wonwoo feels, not just his face, but his whole upper body burn at that. Briefly, he entertains the idea that maybe Mingyu’s making fun of him and he actually does remember Wonwoo. Because he can’t fathom any other possible explanations for the sudden compliment that Mingyu has just paid him, of all people. Why would he do that even if he genuinely doesn’t remember him? Wildly, Wonwoo even considers the possibility of a hidden camera, and casts a look around just in case, before he finally chances a glance at Mingyu once more.

But Mingyu looks so embarrassed now, scarlet nigh on turning purple, as if on the verge of physically taking back his words. It’s a look that Wonwoo doesn’t recall ever seeing on the version of Mingyu that he remembers, cocksure to the point of grating.

“I’m sorry,” Mingyu groans, rubbing at his nape. Even his ears have turned purple. “Oh my god, I’m being a mess without even introducing myself, you don’t even know who I am, oh my god, um. I swear I’m not like this all the time. Okay. I’m. Kim Mingyu?”

I know, Wonwoo thinks.

Outwardly, Wonwoo still doesn’t know what else to do besides a small ‘hi’ and an equally small smile. Mingyu’s hovering next to his table now, alternating between nervously scratching the side of his head and throwing glances at the empty side of the booth opposite Wonwoo.

We do know each other, Wonwoo considers telling him. You drove me crazy back in college. My resident assistant shifts were basically 202 noise complaints because of you, and that’s right, I counted. I couldn’t stand you.

Instead, Wonwoo finds himself gesturing at the empty seat. “Do you wanna sit down or something?”

It’s Wonwoo’s turn to feel like taking back his words now. Did he just have one of those out-of-body experiences that people are always going on about? Because he definitely heard himself ask it, but it didn't feel like he was the one who did either. What the hell did he just do?

But if Wonwoo feels an inexplicable twinge inside at the way Mingyu beams and takes the proffered seat, nobody else has to know.

The next couple of hours happens in a surreal bubble, where Mingyu does practically most of the talking. Wonwoo doesn’t even think Mingyu has ever yelled this many words at him, ever, let alone spoke them. He’s just assuming they’re words because Wonwoo’s too much in shock the entire time, stuttering out what he hopes are appropriate responses. It’s a struggle, to say the least. He never had to hold a proper conversation with Mingyu eight years ago and Mingyu is being so nice to him. The fact that Wonwoo isn’t exactly being the most eloquent or engaging conversationalist in the world doesn’t seem to deter him all that much.

When Wonwoo finally returns to the studio, he spends the rest of it in a daze. He barely registers Jihoon snapping his fingers in front of his face.

What the fuck just happened?

 

 

They keep meeting after that for some reason.

The first few times aren’t planned — not mutually anyway.

Wonwoo just happens to be in the vicinity the very next day, at precisely the same time, even though it’s actually quite out of the way from his workplace. The cake was just that good. Yes, the cake. He does his best to ignore the absurd rate at which his heart starts beating when he does see Mingyu, looking unfairly handsome in a baby blue blazer that sets a gorgeous contrast against his tanned skin, or the way his crazy heart tries to leap into his throat the moment Mingyu spots him.

“H-hi. Wonwoo, right? Imagine meeting you here again,” says Mingyu, clearly trying to suppress a shy grin. It’s the shyness that throws Wonwoo off; he only barely manages to mumble a hello in return. “You’re younger, right?”

Wonwoo shakes his head before he remembers that he’s not supposed to know Mingyu’s age.

Mingyu’s eyes widen. Oh shit. Wonwoo’s done it now.

“You look younger though,” is all Mingyu says.

Wonwoo releases his breath in a cautious laugh. “Doesn’t prove I’m not the hyung. I was born in ‘96.”

“Touché.” Mingyu smiles sheepishly. “You’re right. ‘97. You look like you’re in your twenties though.”

_You’re right_. Wonwoo doesn’t remember Mingyu ever conceding to Wonwoo being right. Or Mingyu being anything other than 100% sure of himself.

“I am in my twenties.”

“I-I mean. You know.”

Wonwoo raises an eyebrow.

“Like,” Mingyu whines, honest to god, he really whines. Wonwoo feels a little awed. “Early twenties.”

Everything is so different from the way they were in college.

Wonwoo isn’t sure how to deal with it at first. Mingyu does this thing where he acts emboldened whenever Wonwoo looks at him, but then completely crumbles into nothingness whenever Wonwoo does so much as smile at, or maintain eye contact with, him for more than five seconds. Wonwoo’s pretty sure Mingyu forgets to breathe at one point.

It comes as a bit of a culture shock.

 

 

The second time they meet at the cafe, though (by pure accident, of course, Wonwoo just happened to be passing by), Mingyu can actually maintain eye contact with him a little longer. His head remains intact, too.

Mingyu doesn’t slip the entire time either, doesn’t show any sign of remembering Wonwoo. Either he’s become an excellent actor since his sudden disappearance or he genuinely doesn’t remember him.

The cafe is busier than usual today and the bustling human activity around them provides either of them more than enough distraction — but Mingyu doesn’t pay any of them any mind at all. He doesn’t even take out his phone the entire time, the way all of Wonwoo’s dates eventually did. His focus is entirely on Wonwoo, and every topic Wonwoo tries to start, Mingyu will shift the point of discussion to Wonwoo. Wonwoo barely manages to learn that Mingyu has been working in America for the past eight years and is only back for his younger sister’s wedding when Mingyu waves a hand at him.

“Stop turning every conversation into making me talk about myself though,” Mingyu whines. It surprises Wonwoo because clearly, it’s exactly what Wonwoo has been thinking about him. “What about you?”

And this is it, really, this is the strangest new aspect of Mingyu thus far. The Mingyu that Wonwoo used to know all those years ago never talked about anything besides himself or his varying excuses or justifications for all the times he acted like an asshole.

Somewhere in the back of Wonwoo’s mind, a treacherous little voice thinks that this feels way too much like a date.

“My life isn’t that interesting,” Wonwoo demurs. “What do I even say about myself? All I do in my spare time is play games and read books and bat away my friend’s attempts to set me up on more blind dates.”

Mingyu tilts his head to one side. “You don’t date?”

“Jun knows too many questionable people. Soonyoung… well. His were alright. If not for the fact that it’ll always turn out that they actually wanted to date him and just got saddled with me because they thought he was asking them out for himself, and he was too dumb to notice.”

“So theoretically,” says Mingyu, slowly, playing with his straw. “You wouldn’t exactly be opposed to dating if they weren’t questionable? Or, you know… actually interested in you?”

Wonwoo huffs out a laugh. “Maybe.”

For some reason, his response makes Mingyu smile softly.

And maybe, just maybe, Wonwoo kind of likes the way Mingyu’s eyes shine when he talks about something that excites him. The extent of his enthusiasm reminds Wonwoo of a puppy and it’s dangerously infectious. Unbidden, Wonwoo feels a smile on his own face, too.

So, he doesn’t really protest all that much when Mingyu asks Wonwoo to unlock his phone so they could exchange numbers.

Wonwoo doesn’t tell a single soul about them.

What was he going to tell any of them anyway?

I’ve been meeting this one guy who claims that he doesn’t remember me but I don’t know if I really believe him because he’s always going completely out of character by saying all these incredibly sweet things?

So, yeah, nobody else knows.

That is until the weekend comes along.

Wonwoo comes to the cafe, as usual, a little scared of how happy he is to see Mingyu already at their table. A part of him is screaming at him to run. And he almost does until Mingyu waves at him and takes Wonwoo completely by surprise when he points to the cake and coffee in front of him.

It’s Wonwoo’s usual order, already waiting for him on his side of the booth. His eyes dart back up to Mingyu, who looks so shyly pleased to see him that Wonwoo feels his heart beat in staccato. God. Mingyu looks so ridiculously attractive with his hair swept up like that. Wonwoo can’t... He digs the fingers that he has shoved into his coat pockets into his thighs just to check if he’s dreaming before he makes his feet move. There’s nothing about this thing between them that Wonwoo understands. He just knows that he stops breathing when Mingyu dares to reach for Wonwoo’s fingers across the table, but somehow remembers to release the breath he’s holding when Mingyu asks if he’s okay.

Wonwoo’s nodding before he realises it and finds that he’s not really lying. He has to look away to will his stupid heart to calm down. God, he’s so confused. What is he even doing?

That’s when he spots Kwon Soonyoung right outside their window.

Wonwoo freezes as he watches Soonyoung’s eyes dart quickly, back and forth, between Wonwoo and Mingyu, jaw ajar. Wonwoo already knows that he’s not going to be able to explain this away. ‘This’ entails Wonwoo’s hand in Mingyu’s as the latter plays with his fingers as if they’re somehow the most fascinating things he has ever beheld.

Wonwoo doesn’t have to be a psychic to know that Soonyoung is going to find out who exactly managed to make Jeon Wonwoo get up and get dressed on a weekend, let alone let him hold his hand. He’s got a lot of explaining to do.

Mingyu curiously follows his line of vision until he sees Soonyoung, too.

Soonyoung recovers from the shock quickly, though, unsubtly gesturing towards where their hands meet and giving Wonwoo two thumbs up before walking away. His actions make Mingyu giggle, and Wonwoo secretly finds it one of the cutest sounds Wonwoo has ever heard.

“Friend?” asks Mingyu, eyes bright with mirth.

Wonwoo sighs. “Unfortunately.”

 

 

Predictably enough, Wonwoo’s temporary reprieve doesn’t last very long.

“So,” Soonyoung stretches the word out later that evening, eyes glinting in curiosity the way he does whenever he’s trying squeeze info out of anyone. “Are we ever going to discuss tall, dark, and sexy? And do we have pictures to share with the class?”

Soonyoung had gone to a dance academy in Japan after high school, so he wouldn’t have known Mingyu. The distance, of course, hadn’t stopped Soonyoung from complaining to him using various social media about his own series of disastrous dates over the years. Wonwoo, though, had done nothing except listen. He already had far too much on his plate in college without the needless stress that comes with dating.

Sure, he’d ‘dated’ in high school, probably more than he had any business doing as a scrawny, awkward kid. Wonwoo didn’t have to ask any of them out. The other kids would come all the way to his classroom just to whisper and giggle whenever he was on cleaning duty. So yeah, he hadn’t exactly been the model student back in high school, stuck on his games and fooling around when he should have been studying. Especially considering the fact that each and every one of those dates bombed. It’s high school.

Wonwoo was lucky he somehow managed to finesse his way into the music course he wanted, along with a literature minor. Which was why he was determined to take his time in college very, very seriously, and change his attitude for the better.

This only means, though, that Soonyoung has probably been waiting for years for this opportunity. Wonwoo would never hear the end of it if Soonyoung learns about the truth. It’s what Wonwoo gets just for being a good friend.

Wonwoo sighs. “He’s just an old friend from college. It’s nothing.”

“A very touchy-feely old friend from college. Whom you let hold your hand. Sure it’s nothing.”

“What are you talking about? I let you hold my hand all the time.”

Soonyoung snorts. “We’ve been best friends since kindergarten, where holding hands was pretty much a requirement, and there were more boys than girls in our class. And I repeat: I am your best friend. The special exception. Your BFF for life. Your bro before —”

“Can we just play quietly?” Wonwoo interrupts to complain. “Either shut up or leave me alone so I can do it myself.”

“Like you’re quiet when you play anyway.” Soonyoung snorts again, settling back into the couch. “You’re gonna start screaming my ear off.”

They manage five full minutes of peace before Soonyoung breaks silence again.

“How come I’ve never heard about him? I know everyone. Have you been keeping him to yourself all this while?”

Wonwoo sighs. “Cyber-stalking doesn’t count.”

“Technicalities.” Soonyoung waves him off. “I do know everyone, don’t I? Except for this guy apparently. Come on, throw me a frickin’ bone.”

“I already did.”

Soonyoung’s about to frown when it turns into a loud gasp, instead. “Is this why Jihoon rolls his eyes whenever I point out how you must’ve been a monk in your past life? Did you actually hook up with someone back in college? Someone like… that guy…? Oh my god. Does Jihoon know something? I’m calling him.”

That’s when Wonwoo starts to panic. He snatches Soonyoung’s phone and shoves it inside his boxers without thinking. Soonyoung ends up being the one screaming in Wonwoo’s ear instead.

 

 

The daily dates, as Wonwoo reluctantly admits to himself are what they are, continue being completely unplanned until Wonwoo’s immune system conspires against him and he’s down with the flu. He’s lying in bed, miserable, tired, and cold, and kind of wishes he’s back in the cafe eating the stupid cake he doesn’t really like all that much with Mingyu until he spots his phone lighting up from his bed stand.

 

**Kim Mingyu ٩(ˊᗜˋ*)و**  
> ur coffee’s gettin cold!

 

Wonwoo’s toes curl at the little emoji Mingyu has keyed in next to his name. Cute. His mood plummets, though, when he realises Mingyu just wasted money on Wonwoo for absolutely nothing. He checks the time and whimpers to himself when he realises Mingyu has probably been waiting for him for at least an hour now.

 

**Me**  
> I’m sick in bed now...  
> I’m so sorry I never said anything!  
> ):

**Kim Mingyu ٩(ˊᗜˋ*)و**  
> what!  
> oh nooo ;_;  
> *punches germs* what did jww ever do to u???!!!!!!!!!!

**Me**  
> I feel so bad…  
> You wasted your money…...

**Kim Mingyu ٩(ˊᗜˋ*)و**  
> i punched ur germs so u should feel better instead  
> jww pls ):  
> dw about it pls it’s not like it costs 100 million won so!  
> i can just give this 2 Seungkwan he’s been on my ass about this guy I keep buying coffee 4 instead of him 2neways

**Me**  
> Oh. Is Seungkwan a friend?

**Kim Mingyu ٩(ˊᗜˋ*)و**  
> yea. im gonna assume this is ur sick-addled way of subtly ask if im single

**Kim Mingyu ٩(ˊᗜˋ*)و**  
> didnt think it’s not obvious enough with all those times ive been accidentally on purpose tryin 2 see u  
> again n again  
> AND holding ur hand but bc ur sick im gonna say this super clearly

 

Wonwoo jumps when his phone starts vibrating in his hands. He taps on it shakily and picks up Mingyu’s call.

“Mingyu?”

“Jeon Wonwoo.” Mingyu laughs on the phone, and oh, Wonwoo kind of missed that. It’s ridiculous how much he missed that when it’s only been a day. “I haven’t been able to get you out of my head like… pretty much since the day we met. I kind of... like you, you know. It seriously sucks I’m telling you this over the phone, and not in person. But it’s your fault okay, you totally forced my hand.”

If Wonwoo starts crying, embarrassingly enough, it’s because his chest hurts so much, his sinuses are overloaded, his head feels heavy — he’s literally too sick to handle emotions as a proper adult should. He wants so desperately to believe Mingyu means everything he says.

Mingyu immediately panics, blabbering something almost incoherent — correct in thinking he’s made Wonwoo cry but incorrect in the conclusions Wonwoo’s sure he’s leaping to. So Wonwoo takes a deep breath.

“Stop, Mingyu,” he croaks out, god he sounds awful. “I... I think I kind of like you too.”

 

 

The first time Mingyu asks if he can kiss him happens right after Wonwoo finally feels better.

Mingyu’s not waiting at their usual table when Wonwoo arrives. Instead, he’s already at the parking lot where they actually agreed, for the first time ever, to meet. His hands are full with his and Wonwoo’s usual order. When Mingyu notices Wonwoo exiting his car, he somehow manages to wave excitedly without spilling either of their drinks.

Wonwoo, though, is stuck on the fact that Mingyu is in all white today, white turtleneck underneath white coat and fuck — he looks so fucking good. It makes Wonwoo feel a little self-conscious even though he had spent an extra hour this morning deciding what to wear. He hasn’t felt this ridiculous about anyone before.

He tells himself to cut it out already.

Mingyu’s smile is shy when he says hi and informs him that Wonwoo needs to work for his cake today.

“What do you mean?” asks Wonwoo.

“Well. I told you I like you and you claim you feel the same but then you made me wait for a whole week because you refused to let me come over and make you soup. I think I deserve a reward, Jeon Wonwoo.”

Of course, Wonwoo couldn’t let Mingyu come over. He knew that Jun and Soonyoung would come by his apartment every now and then just to make sure he hadn’t dropped dead. It was a disaster waiting to happen and Wonwoo just wasn’t ready for the mayhem that was sure to follow if Mingyu had shown up. Plus, he looks disgusting whenever he’s sick. There was no way he’d let Mingyu see that.

Wonwoo makes a show of being hurt, trying to pout, but he’s doing a bad job of hiding his smile.

Mingyu sighs exaggeratedly and hands him his order. “I can’t win against that smile.”

Wonwoo feels smug as he accepts the paper bag from him with one hand. And then he takes a deep breath as he grabs Mingyu’s now available hand with his other hand before he chickens out. The way Mingyu’s whole face goes completely red makes him so glad he did it.

Whatever game they’re playing, Wonwoo’s in this to win.

“You’ll be the death of me, Jeon Wonwoo,” Mingyu mutters under his breath before tightening his grip on Wonwoo’s hand.

They end up just walking within the area around the cafe together, with no real destination in mind. Mingyu tells Wonwoo he missed Wonwoo when he was sick, and waited every day at the cafe even though he knew Wonwoo wasn’t coming. Immediately, Mingyu tries to backtrack, visibly panicked, but Wonwoo only squeezes his hand before Mingyu relaxes.

Somehow, this evolves into them making up wildly inappropriate conversations between other people.

“You’re a nasty little twerp,” says Mingyu, pretending to be the man telling a screaming child off more than a distance away from them.

“I’m so sorry!” Wonwoo’s whining in a high, child-like voice. “I’m sorry I learnt that shit from you, motherfucker!”

Mingyu giggles a bit. “I would’ve used protection if I knew it’d result in the antichrist!”

Wonwoo’s eyes start welling up from how hard he’s trying not to laugh until he gives in.

“Oh my god, we’re going to hell,” he wheezes out, clutching his tummy as he laughs.

It’s not even that funny. And yet here he is, crying from how hard he’s laughing.

He almost misses the way Mingyu gazes at him with open affection.

“You should always smile,” says Mingyu, eyes soft. “You seriously have the prettiest smile ever.”

“Yours isn’t so bad,” Wonwoo whispers, trying to fight the urge to look away. “Maybe second prettiest then.”

Mingyu snorts but he shifts closer to Wonwoo anyway. “I should be offended. You’re lucky so pretty, you know. All I could think about ever since you came back is how much I want to kiss you.”

Wonwoo’s heart does its best to burst through his poor chest at Mingyu’s words. He doesn’t realise how close Mingyu is to him now until he’s just there. Wonwoo suddenly feels hyper-aware of the existence of Mingyu’s lips and the way Mingyu’s pupils are completely dilated. It’s all too real and Wonwoo’s breaths have gone completely shallow. Their lips are mere millimetres away from each other when Wonwoo hurriedly blocks his own lips with his hand. He jumps a little bit when Mingyu’s lips still brush against the back of his hand.

“I was only just sick!” Wonwoo cries out from behind his hand. “I don’t want you to get sick too.”

“I don’t care,” says Mingyu boldly. “I’ll beat the germs up myself.”

But Wonwoo doesn’t budge, shaking his head violently, so Mingyu relents and takes a step back with an awkward apology. Wonwoo thinks he’s off the hook until Mingyu attempts to make a compromise and asks him out to dinner. His logic is that if Wonwoo eats well, then he would get better quicker, and maybe then they could finally kiss.

“If you want to, I mean,” Mingyu adds hurriedly — nervously, even.

And Wonwoo feels a little laugh bubble out at him, at that, in spite of himself.

Later, Wonwoo’s back at work, staring blankly at a presentation that he should be paying attention to when he finally gives in and sneaks Mingyu a text.

 

**Me**  
> Is that dinner invitation still open?

**Kim Mingyu ٩(ˊᗜˋ*)و**  
> for u? always uwu

 

 

Wonwoo doesn’t think anything in his closet could have made him feel less underdressed for the restaurant that Mingyu takes him to.

He’s not poor by any means; the amount of royalties he earns from years of songwriting under Jihoon’s team at least lets him splurge on early game releases and hardcovers. But now he thinks that maybe he should have invested in a closet overhaul.

The fact that there are a gazillion different utensils in front of him leaves him feeling oddly impressed and incredibly intimidated. He wants to ask how Mingyu’s able to afford any of this but it feels like a terribly nosy thing to do so he doesn’t.

“I feel like Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman,” Wonwoo whispers as he fidgets in his cheap clothes, eyeing the pristine cutlery.

“You do look the part,” says Mingyu.

“I look like a hooker?”

Mingyu sputters at that. “No! Nooooooo, I mean you’re pretty!”

Wonwoo only chuckles; somehow Mingyu’s tiny bubble of anxiety kind of calms him a little. His momentary peace doesn’t last because he learns two more surprising facts about Mingyu that evening.

One: Kim Mingyu is most definitely filthy rich.

There’s no way he isn’t. He looks way too much at home in such a grandiose setting for him not to be. Every single seam in his suit screams money, and god, he even knows what to do with every single utensil on the table. It makes him wonder if Mingyu has always been rich his entire life, and Wonwoo just never knew.

Two: Kim Mingyu’s friends really don’t like Wonwoo.

It makes him wish that he only has to contend with the first surprising fact of the evening.

Three of Mingyu’s closest friends apparently happen to feel like dining in at the exact same restaurant that Mingyu takes him to. The way Mingyu frowns at them makes Wonwoo think that it’s probably not at all the coincidental meeting that they all claim it is.

Somehow, one of them manages to charm the staff into merging their tables together.

Seungkwan smiles whenever Wonwoo attempts any of his bad jokes but the smiles all have a sharp edge to them, like he’s trying to stop himself from saying something snide.

Jeonghan is friendlier, but every so often, Wonwoo catches him carefully watching whenever Mingyu speaks to Wonwoo. As if he’s waiting for Wonwoo to slip. They’ve moved onto the main course when he starts drilling Wonwoo with all sorts of seemingly innocent questions. Wonwoo feels perspiration bead across his forehead as he struggles not to make some kind of blunder or unknowingly fall into a trap.

Minghao remains silent the entire time. It lulls Wonwoo into a sense of security until he realises that Minghao lightly interrupts Wonwoo whenever he tries to talk to Mingyu directly. He tries to tell himself that he’s imagining it until Minghao even goes so far as to kick Wonwoo’s feet apart from Mingyu’s under the table — even though Mingyu had been the one in Wonwoo’s side of the table.

“I don’t think your friends like me very much,” Wonwoo whispers to Mingyu right before he gets into his car.

“They don’t…” Mingyu tries. “T-they —” His shoulders slump. “I really don’t know why they’re being like this, I’m sorry. They’ve never done anything like this before.”

The statement does nothing to abate how horrible Wonwoo feels. Wonwoo tries to wave it off but when he gets home, he feels like he’s just failed a major test he’d forgotten to study for. His mind ruminates on every single thing he says to all his friends, over and over, like a recurring waking nightmare when Mingyu texts him.

 

**Kim Mingyu ٩(ˊᗜˋ*)و**  
> dw too much about my friends ok.  
> see u jww *☆( ˘ω˘ )☆*.+  
>

 

And if Wonwoo smiles at the ridiculousness of the idea that Mingyu makes meme gifs using his own face, even Mingyu doesn’t get to know. He turns and buries a small smile into the pillow.

 

 

Wonwoo’s the one who kisses Mingyu first. It takes him completely by surprise too.

They meet at the cafe as usual but they haven’t gone inside for a few days now. Instead, Mingyu has been getting Wonwoo to show him his favourite spots, claiming he’s practically a tourist now. It’s been years since Mingyu has been back in Korea after all.

He first takes Mingyu to the pancake place near their old campus. In his head, it’s a dare. Maybe today Mingyu will finally slip if he’s really lying about not remembering Wonwoo because it used to be one of the last few places where they’d been together. Not together, together — Wonwoo and the rest of the resident assistants always organised pancake trips on the last Sunday of each month.

He was painfully aware of the fact that Mingyu never missed any of them.

Because back then, Mingyu would throw bits of shredded fried chicken at his head from the booth behind Wonwoo. Whenever Wonwoo turned around with a glare, though, Mingyu would only smile innocently, as if daring Wonwoo to make a scene. That, he remembers with absolute clarity, as if it had only happened yesterday.

He isn’t sure how prepared he is to see the exact same smile on Mingyu’s face again, but this time, sans flying food.

It’s a strange contrast, to say the least.

“Is there something on my face?” Mingyu asks, the smile disappearing as he rubs his chin.

Wonwoo silently shakes his head.

“Oh. I kind of get messy when I eat, so…”

Maybe it’s this difference, coupled with how soft Mingyu looks as he’s self-consciously wiping the area around his mouth with the back of his hand. There’s literally nothing on Mingyu’s face, besides the adorable little pout that seems to be growing with every second. Wonwoo’s heart works double time as he impulsively leans across the table and tugs Mingyu closer to kiss the corner of Mingyu’s mouth.

Immediately, though, mortification floods Wonwoo’s whole being like never before. He really... did that. Wonwoo raises both his arms, ready to shove Mingyu back into his seat when Mingyu takes him by surprise — as he seems to be wont to do — and cups Wonwoo’s cheeks softly as if he is holding something particularly precious. And as Mingyu’s lips move slowly, gently, against his, Wonwoo finally stops thinking for once. Mingyu’s lips are a little chapped, but they’re warm, so warm, and all Wonwoo wants to do is kiss him.

“Fuck, Wonwoo,” Mingyu whispers with a laugh when they finally pull apart. “I feel like I’ve wanted to do that forever.”

There’s a dopey, blissed out sort of look on Mingyu’s face now. Somehow, it makes him look even more gorgeous than he already does. Wonwoo feels so wildly tempted to kiss him again even though they’re attracting way too much attention to themselves by now. He’d seen that look on Mingyu only once back in college — one of the few memories he has of them that hadn’t involved Wonwoo telling Mingyu off. It hadn’t gone quite the same way, though.

Back then, Mingyu had stumbled into the dorm building by himself, drunk and unsteady. He’d nearly fallen onto his face, but not before Wonwoo instinctively attempted to catch him. Except Mingyu had weighed about a ton, and Wonwoo was always a skinny little thing, so they both fell on their asses anyway. Mingyu screeched out a high-pitched, hyena-like laugh that stunned Wonwoo a little.

“Jeon Wonwoo. My hero.” Wonwoo still remembers Mingyu declaring.

Wonwoo hadn’t been able to tell back then if he was being sarcastic, or just drunk out of his fucking mind, or maybe both. It doesn’t matter anymore though, because right now, Mingyu’s here, looking at Wonwoo the exact same way, completely sober this time.

The thought occurs to Wonwoo that even if Mingyu has been lying about not remembering Wonwoo, he can’t be lying about how he feels about Wonwoo. There is no way he didn’t mean that kiss. Literally, no one else has ever kissed Wonwoo like that.

They’re holding hands as Mingyu walks Wonwoo back to his car when Mingyu tugs Wonwoo in for another kiss.

“Come to my apartment tonight,” says Wonwoo on a whim. His eyes widen at the implications behind his own words. “But not! Not for —”

Mingyu laughs. “Alright, calm down, I’ll do my best to control my urges.”

Wonwoo kisses him again, right there and then. Just because. The way Mingyu gasps into the kiss makes it is worth it.

“Babe, you’re sending me mixed messages here,” Mingyu croaks out when Wonwoo pulls away.

They really don’t do anything beyond takeout and curling up in Wonwoo’s couch, watching Friends on Netflix together. His heater has a mind of its own, only fully switched on as and when it wants to, but Mingyu has one arm around Wonwoo and he doesn’t even fight the urge to snuggle into Mingyu’s warm shoulder. Wonwoo already removed his contact lens earlier, too, because his eyes were getting far too dry. All in all, Wonwoo feels so very, extremely warm and comfortable now.

He can see Mingyu guiltily drinking his guilt beer (guilt, because Wonwoo doesn’t like alcohol and Mingyu had felt so guilty, he almost threw the whole thing out until Wonwoo physically stopped him) from his periphery the entire time, but he doesn’t actually notice Mingyu staring at him. It’s only when Ross has a complete mental breakdown over Rachel and Joey that Wonwoo realises that Mingyu isn’t laughing along with him. Wonwoo flushes as he asks Mingyu what he’s doing, but Mingyu just shakes his head and kisses Wonwoo on his cheek.

“This is a really funny episode though,” Wonwoo whines.

“I know. I’ve seen it before.”

Wonwoo knows Mingyu can’t be drunk at all, not even tipsy, because he’s only a fifth-way through one bottle all night, and his eyes are so completely clear.

“Well, do you wanna watch something else then?”

Mingyu shakes his head again. “Nope. Just wanna look at your face, is all.”

Wonwoo squirms under the attention. “I’m starting to think you just want me for my looks.”

“Mmhmm.” Mingyu nods this time. “I definitely do want you for your looks. I think I’ve made that pretty clear from like… the very first time we met. I like your pretty nose.” Mingyu kisses his nose again. “And your pretty cheekbones.” He moves to gently brush his lips against the bones of his cheeks. Then, his fingers trace the edge of Wonwoo’s glasses. “And I really, really, really like the way you look in your glasses. I can’t believe you’ve been keeping these from me.”

Wonwoo laughs incredulously. “My glasses? That’s a first.”

“Nobody has ever told you how cute you look in these before? I don’t believe that one bit.”

“They’re just glasses,” Wonwoo argues, heart beating faster than he’d like. “They’re just there to help me see. Besides, someone once said they make me look like I’ve got a very large stick up my ass.”

Mingyu frowns. “They sound like an idiot.”

Wonwoo smiles crookedly as he wonders what Mingyu would say if he tells him the truth. That Mingyu had been the same idiot who had yelled that at him in the middle of one of their more heated arguments. What if he does tell him this time?

“Maybe.” He doesn’t tell him.

“Well,” says Mingyu, leaning even closer so their lips could meet this time. “I think they make you look even prettier. It’s kind of illegal how pretty they make you look. You should wear them all the time.”

It’s confusing, to say the least. Wonwoo’s heart melts at how innocent Mingyu looks with his eyes closed when they pull apart. But he doesn’t know what to think of Mingyu’s words either. Which times did he truly mean what he said?

They switch to a random Netflix movie that Wonwoo isn’t even really enjoying when Mingyu falls asleep against Wonwoo, dressed in Wonwoo’s clothes. He had to change earlier because he’d spilt sauce from their takeout all over his own shirt.

Wonwoo had to dig deep in his closet for the baggiest ones he could find since but he’s still a lot thinner than Mingyu. It’s lucky Wonwoo went through a phase when he’d buy everything in more than a few sizes larger than his actual size. They’re still a little tight on Mingyu, but it works. The sight almost makes it hard to believe that Mingyu had been the one to spit out those words at Wonwoo.

Because this Mingyu… this Mingyu is soft instead of cruel. And maybe that’s the cruel part — the fact that he’s just so soft and warm when his face looks the way that it does. Handsome, and sinfully so.

Wonwoo’s reluctant to interrupt how peaceful he looks, but their necks are going to really hurt the next day if they stay in the couch through the night, so he makes a half-asleep Mingyu move to his bed.

He finds out, though, that Mingyu’s softness multiplies beyond his wildest imaginations when he sleeps because he suddenly looks impossibly small for a man of his height while curled up under the covers. It’s a sight that he was obviously never treated to back in Pledis, and it makes Wonwoo kind of want to forget everything that ever happened back then — pretend a little longer.

It also makes him forget the fact that it’s the weekend and Junhui still has a spare key to his apartment.

And that is how he finds Jun the next morning, sprawled insolently across a kitchen chair.

“So... when were you going to tell me you’re seeing someone?” asks Jun, face serene, helping himself to Wonwoo’s supply of peanut butter. “And that someone is Kim Mingyu of all people?

He saw them in bed together. That much is clear. Wonwoo sighs as he massages his temple. He seems to be doing that often lately.

“It’s still kinda new…” He trails off when he notices Jun raising his eyebrow.

“You hated that guy,” says Jun, amusement writ on his face. “It was the most irritating thing, you know. Remember that time we were heading home from the club and I wanted to offer him to share a cab with us but you legit stomped on my foot. It wasn’t even subtle! Literally everybody else got along with him but you? You guys fought all the time and I distinctly recall you calling him the Antichrist.”

“I was just doing my job. I wouldn’t have had to yell at him so much if he didn’t make my life so difficult.”

Jun shakes his head. “So what now?”

“Now?” Wonwoo pulls at his sweater sleeves. “He’s not so bad now.”

“Oh, really? What else do we think of him?”

“Maybe I... kind of like him a little bit,” Wonwoo mumbles.

“Pardon?” Jun is grinning so widely, Wonwoo fucking knows he heard it the first time.

“I said I like him, okay? Happy?”

Jun laughs. “This is just too good. Mr. I’m Too Good To Date In College caught sleeping with the enemy from college. I told you he’s not so bad if you two would just stop yelling at each other. Jesus, I should’ve known it was just sexual tension.”

“It’s not — I didn’t sleep with him,” Wonwoo argues. “Not that way. We literally just... slept. We were just watching stuff on Netflix.”

Jun squints at him, and Wonwoo knows by now that it means he’s trying to figure something out. He can practically see the gears turning in his head. It’s a whole, needlessly long minute of this and Wonwoo’s starting to feel incredibly uncomfortable.

“How long has this been going on for?”

Wonwoo winces. “I don’t know… A few weeks?”

Jun squints at him, clearly expecting him to elaborate, so Wonwoo sighs.

“Okay… Every day for the past few weeks.”

“Oh my god,” Jun covers half his face with a palm. “Jeon Wonwoo… You’re falling in love with him, aren’t you?”

”Be a little louder, why don’t you,” Wonwoo hissed — Mingyu’s still sound asleep in his bed. Wonwoo swears he’s going to kill Jun if Mingyu wakes up and hears anything. “I think Chan could hear you from all the way in Japan.”

“You never really do this. Netflix and chilled and you didn’t even sleep with him? Not even a little?”

“Shut the fuck up, oh my god, I’m not, I don’t even sleep around all that much, Jun, what the hell.”

“But you don’t take them back just to cuddle either.”

Wonwoo makes a weird noise in his throat. “Sure I have. Eunbi. Jonghyun.”

“My point exactly. And I’m pretty sure you slept with them first.”

“Why do you know so much about this?” Wonwoo mutters. “I’ve only gone out with him for like two weeks, okay? Three? I don’t know.”

“Again, my point exactly!” Jun’s voice raises too loudly. “Three fucking weeks! And he’s still alive!”

“Jun, seriously,” Wonwoo’s begging as quietly as he can. “Please shut the fuck up. He still doesn’t know I remember him.”

“Wait. What?”

“He didn’t remember me when we met, so I’ve just been pretending I didn’t know him either. Please don’t say anything.”

Jun’s eyes widen. “You’re serious.”

“It’s kind of better this way,” says Wonwoo, gazing at the random piece of cardboard on the ground that probably came from their takeout last night. “It’s like a reboot. Like we’re retconning all the stupid stuff that happened, you know? And he’s different, just… so much... more... It’s still him, still the same loud boy we knew, but… it’s different. Maybe it’s just me that’s different. Or maybe it’s both of us. I don’t know.”

“Oh boy, you really do like him, don’t you?” Jun asks softly.

Wonwoo feels so tired suddenly. “I guess.”

“You guess?”

“I’m still…” Wonwoo’s whisper trails off. “The things he says now contradict everything he used to say. I still don’t know what’s real. Most of the time, I think he means it when he says all these things about me now. But none of it makes sense.”

“Like what?”

“Like… just last night — okay, please don’t laugh but he said my glasses made me look prettier.” Wonwoo blushes when Jun raises his eyebrows. “But back in college, he once told me that they made me look like I had a stick up my ass.”

Jun nods thoughtfully. “I don’t think you’ve ever told me this. Sounds homoerotic to me.”

“What.”

“I mean I dunno about you,” Jun continues. “But I found you two curled around each other in your bed with one of his hands on your cute little flat ass. The same one he claims you have a stick wedged in it. I’d say he’s actually pretty consistent in his fixation.”

Wonwoo flushes. “We were asleep. Shut up. Here I am, trying to be serious… Jun, I can’t tell if it’s just me losing my mind just because he’s a really fucking good kisser or not. I feel like I’m still waiting for the other shoe to drop or something.”

Jun shakes his head. “I’ve never seen you act like this about anyone before. Not even Jonghyun. And you dated that guy for, what, three years? Mingyu seriously got under your skin.”

Wonwoo doesn’t answer this time, just leans against the kitchen counter in silence. Seeing Jonghyun was good, comfortable, but there was always something missing. He’d only stayed in the relationship because it didn’t feel like he’d had to put in all that much effort. Jonghyun wasn’t really around half the time, anyway, since he travels so often. It had come as a little bit like a relief when he finally broke up with Wonwoo.

Ironically though, when Wonwoo asked what went wrong — if it had been all the long distance between them — until Jonghyun pointed out that Wonwoo wasn’t around either. And he didn’t mean it in the physical sense.

“Okay, come here.” Jun pats his head a little, before pulling him into a bear hug. “Don’t think so much, you know? We all did and said dumb shit when we were in college. I mean, we still do that now, but it was way worse back then, don’t you think? I wasn’t lying when I said he was actually a good guy. Who knows, maybe it was all just a lousy misunderstanding. And if he does end up hurting you, well, I’ll just go and ask Jihoon to beat him up. Easy. That’s what best friends are for, right? The best friend is me, of course. Not Jihoon.”

Wonwoo huffs out a laugh at that. “‘kay.”

“Uh…” Wonwoo turns around so quick at Mingyu’s voice. “Am I interrupting something?”

Mingyu’s frozen at the kitchen doorway, blinking at the both of them, traces of sleep still in his eyes.

Wonwoo springs back from Jun’s embrace. His head is whirling, as he scrambles to figure out how much Mingyu had heard, or if this was going to cause some kind of misunderstanding, and he has to find a way to explain that it isn’t what it looks like. But he stops in his tracks when he sees the look of recognition on Mingyu’s face.

“Junhui? Jun?”

Jun glances quickly at Wonwoo before returning his focus on Mingyu.

He remembers Jun... but not Wonwoo?

“Mingyu?” Jun ventures hesitantly.

“Jun! Dude! Yeah! It’s me, holy shit, it’s been so long!” Mingyu practically bounds towards him, offering some semblance of a dudebro handshake. “You know Wonwoo?!”

“This idiot here is my best friend.” Jun ruffles Wonwoo’s hair a bit, in an obvious attempt to ease the tension radiating from Wonwoo. “Who has been hiding things from me! Jeon Wonwoo, really, I can’t believe you’ve been shacking it up with my old lab partner. I could’ve introduced you two earlier if I knew you two would hit it off. Looks like you guys are getting along really well.”

Wonwoo shoots a look at Jun, who’s smiling at him meaningfully — Play along.

Mingyu huffs out an embarrassed laugh. “Well. We’re here now.”

Jun chuckles at that. “Yeah, you are.”

Between Jun and Mingyu, the two of them cook breakfast that Wonwoo can’t fully appreciate. It’s objectively delicious, of course, Wonwoo knew it would be. Jun is a rising head chef and Wonwoo has already tried Mingyu’s cooking once. But he’s not really paying attention to any of it. Wonwoo watches in silence as Jun and Mingyu catch up, probably laughing over something that Wonwoo isn’t listening to.

Mingyu remembers Jun… but why not him?

Nothing about this made sense. Wonwoo’s brain is working at a mile a minute, head beginning to ache a little at all the crazy possibilities he can think of. Was Wonwoo just that insignificant and forgettable?

He’s completely spaced out when a warm hand closes over his, bringing him back to Earth. Wonwoo looks up, eyes meeting Mingyu’s worried puppy eyes surveying him in concern while Jun has his back to the both of them as he clears the dishes.

“You okay?” Mingyu alternates between gently squeezing and releasing Wonwoo’s fingers.

It’s an unexpected comfort, and Wonwoo nods at him with a soft smile. Maybe Jun’s right. He probably shouldn’t think so much.

 

 

“Kim Mingyu! Cute emoticon!” Soonyoung crows. “His name is Kim Mingyu!”

So, alright, maybe it was Wonwoo’s own fault for leaving his phone lying around.

“That’s just a client,” Wonwoo tries.

“A client with his name saved next to a cute emoticon.” Soonyoung’s expression is like the cat that got the cream. “And he sends messages saying ‘I miss ur pretty smile uwu’. Uh huh.”

Wonwoo flushes a bit at that. He hasn’t seen Mingyu for the past few days since the latter has been busy helping out with the final stages of his little sister’s wedding, the reason for why Mingyu’s back in Korea in the first place. Truth be told, Wonwoo misses him too.

“Did you really say an emoticon out loud?” Woowoo elects to say instead.

“Don’t try to change the subject.”

Wonwoo turns his character around and shoots Soonyoung’s character in the head. He feels a modicum of satisfaction when Soonyoung squawks in the most undignified fashion and shakes his controller at him.

“We were on the same team, what the fuck!”

“Were we really? I didn’t know,” Wonwoo feigns ignorance.

Soonyoung is pouting at him now. “You’re a meanie, you know that? Why are you being such a little bitch about this? At least tell me something about him. Come on! How long have we been besties for?”

Wonwoo concentrates on the game and pays him dust.

“I’m telling Jihoon.”

That gets Wonwoo’s attention. “I’ll buy you a new headset if you don’t.”

“You really don’t want me to tell Jihoon huh?” Soonyoung looks like he’s plotting something and Wonwoo doesn’t like it at all. “Throw in telling me something about Mingyu and killing your own character right now, too, and it’s a deal.”

Wonwoo sighs before he selects a grenade and blows his own character up.

“Why do you want to know so badly?” asks Wonwoo. “It’s not like you tell me everything.”

Soonyoung makes a high-pitched noise. “I do so tell you everything! I even told you about that one time me, Seokmin, Jihoon —”

“Point taken,” Wonwoo says quickly, grimacing. He really doesn’t want to hear that particular story again. He needs normal friends. “I met Mingyu at that cafe and we’ve maybe been seeing each other almost every day since then. Maybe we’re kind of dating now. That’s it.”

“Every single day?” Soonyoung marvels. “This guy is a miracle. How come I’ve never heard of him? I mean, I know you had your whole ‘I’m not looking for a relationship’ phase back in college but you never brought him up, like, at all.”

“I couldn’t stand him back then,” Wonwoo admits. “He was a pain in the ass whenever I was on duty, you know, back when I was resident assistant. And it was just me, he was totally well-behaved when it was any other RA. I almost lost my job once because of him. He made me resolve 202 noise complaints.”

“So what, this Mingyu guy is in the Wonwoo Book of Records for being loud. Wonder what else he’s in that book for.”

Wonwoo’s phone screen lights up again before he can even formulate a response. He does his best to ignore the glint in Soonyoung’s eyes as he snatches his traitorous phone before it can give Soonyoung further ammunition.

 

**Kim Mingyu ٩(ˊᗜˋ*)و**  
> i miss ur pretty smile uwu  
> was gonna ask u to send me a pic just bc  
> but i did my own diggin n look what i found  
> https://instagram.com/1woo/ !!!  
> scrolled thru so many cats just to find one (1) jww smile  
> SO worth it :D

**Me**  
> How did you find that??? I haven’t even updated that since college...

**Kim Mingyu ٩(ˊᗜˋ*)و**  
> ٩(ˊᗜˋ*)و

 

“Yeah, okay,” Soonyoung singsongs. “You must really loathe him if you’re choosing to talk to him instead of playing this game you’ve allegedly been dying to play all year with your ultimate best friend right now. Entry under Wonwoo Book of Records: The Most Number of Times Of Successfully Distracting Jeon Wonwoo When He’s Gaming.”

Wonwoo glares at him. “Junhui’s my ultimate best friend.”

Soonyoung scrunches up his nose and ignores him. “So come on, how come you never told me about this Mingyu guy? It’s not like I’ve never been to your dorm, you even introduced me to some people there. Like that dude with some kind of foot fetish who tried to ask me out, like, I’m not gonna kink shame or anything but no.”

“You’ve been there like, once, the year he was there,” Wonwoo rolls his eyes. “I don’t even remember if he was there during that week. And did you really expect me to introduce you to a guy I couldn’t stand?”

“You couldn’t have hated him that much,” Soonyoung argues. “I mean, look at you two now. What changed? Did he get hotter or something?” He makes an ‘o’ face. “Was he really hideous back then?”

Wonwoo buries his face in his hands. “No, he looked pretty much the same. God. Are we done?”

Soonyoung chuckles and picks up his controller again. “For now. You’re not off the hook yet. And I get to choose my headset.”

Wonwoo moves to do the same but his mind drifts back to his old, abandoned Instagram account.

He is so distracted that he doesn’t notice Soonyoung talking to him until the latter snaps his fingers at him.

“While I take extreme delight in overtaking your kill count,” says Soonyoung. “You never lose this badly. What’s on your mind, dude?”

“I lied to Mingyu,” Wonwoo confesses.

Soonyoung frowns. “What about?”

“I told him I didn’t remember him. I do. Remember him.”

“What? Why?”

“He didn’t remember who I was.” Wonwoo groans as he sets aside his controller, uncaring of the fact that his character just got shot, and is waiting for him to respawn, as he unlocks his phone again. “I didn’t want to seem like a loser.”

Soonyoung’s frown deepens. “Why and how would that make you a loser?”

“You know. It’d look like it mattered to me more. Like he’s just that memorable and meant more to me than I ever did to him. It’s embarrassing.”

“Well, clearly he did and he does.” Soonyoung rolls his eyes as he presses pause. “Because your brain just went through some crazy ass mental gymnastics there. What the fuck. This Mingyu guy is really doing a number on you. I’m gonna go raid your fridge while you obsessively go through your phone.”

Wonwoo barely registers anything Soonyoung is saying. He’s pretty sure Mingyu’s in at least a few of his Instagram posts.

Mingyu went to almost every event organised by the resident assistants back then, after all, so he had to be in there. Not for long, though, because Mingyu was there for barely a year before his abrupt departure. Mingyu even deleted every social media account of his that Wonwoo knew of, completely disappearing from the internet.

Wonwoo knew simply because he was a resident assistant and wanted to know the people living in their dorms, of course. And if that included Kim Mingyu the freshman, the living personification of hell, then fine. Wonwoo is nothing but 100% dedicated to everything he does.

So Mingyu probably has no evidence of the one time he and Wonwoo had known each other, except the one he’d just found. Wonwoo would delete them, but odds are, Mingyu would have already seen them. It would be even more suspicious if Wonwoo deletes them now.

Wonwoo ignores him as he finds Mingyu in one of the group shots, mouth open mid-laughter. Oh god. He’s really fucked.

“Soonyoung!”

“What!” He yells from the fridge.

Wonwoo waits until Soonyoung is back at the couch, a couple of cans of iced lemon tea in his hand.

“What?” Soonyoung repeats himself.

“He just found my Instagram account,” says Wonwoo, panicking as he shoves his phone at him. “He thinks we don’t know each other.”

Soonyoung squints at the group photo before whistling. “He’s cute. No wonder you wanted to keep him to yourself.”

“Soonyoung… please.” Wonwoo massages his temples. “Can we please just focus? Those photos are on my account. He thinks I don’t remember him.”

“Oh.” Soonyoung blinks. “Oh boy. You’re kind of fucked huh.”

“Thanks. That’s really helpful.”

“Okay, look.” Soonyoung places both cans on the table and wipes the condensation from his palms on Wonwoo’s couch. “Let it be stated for the record that I still think this whole pretending not to know him is stupid and you should’ve just gone for the truth in the first place. And now you look like boo boo the fool.”

“Really, thanks a lot. This is what friends are for.”

“But I mean, you abandoned that account, didn’t you?” Soonyoung shrugs. “If you wanna continue being the big liar that you are, just keep saying you forgot or something. It’s not exactly easy to remember a whole building worth of faces.”

Huh. Wonwoo reaches for a can on the table as he relaxes again. It’s a fair point.

“Of course, not everyone’s a loser like you, pretending they don’t remember someone. Especially someone this cute.” Soonyoung swipes to the next group photo with Mingyu in a low cut top. “Scratch that, he’s fucking HOT. If you ever go back to hating him, I’m going after him.”

Wonwoo sniffs. “This is why Jun is my best friend.”

“Sure he is,” Soonyoung snorts as he stands up. “And he’s the one staying up with you at ass o’clock, listening to your heart crisis.”

“He knows about Mingyu already,” Wonwoo retorts. “Plus he knew Mingyu from college. He knows all these things that should be privy to a real best friend.”

Soonyoung gasps. “How dare you. I thought we were homies. Give me back my friendship bracelet.”

 

 

Wonwoo is a bundle of nerves the next time he meets Mingyu.

What if he asks something Wonwoo can’t answer? Or worse, he technically can. He half expected Mingyu to throw a barrage of questions involving the photos with the both of them in them as soon as they meet, except the first thing Mingyu does the moment he sees Wonwoo is plant a kiss on his cheek. Maybe he’s been overthinking things again and it’s not going to be as bad as he imagined.

But then Mingyu tells him he wants to go to a playground that he remembers from his brief college days near their old dormitory (well, to Mingyu, it’s his old dormitory). And it gives Wonwoo pause. Why this particular playground? How much of the past does he remember beyond an old labmate?

“Come on,” Mingyu coaxes. “I actually went there last night with Jeonghan after my sister’s wedding but I wanna go again. With you. Here, I’ll set up Google Maps.”

Wonwoo often used to go there late at night when it’s completely deserted. It’s calming. Just sitting on the swings always made him feel more at peace.

He’d been playing by himself one evening when they were both still in college, just to get away from it all when Mingyu found him there. Wonwoo expected Mingyu to come up with something to mock him for, but all Mingyu ended up doing was sit on the only other available swing next to Wonwoo and push his feet off the ground in shared silence. Neither of them had been drunk that night. It is the single most bizarre memory he has of Mingyu. Years later, he still doesn’t know what to make of it.

He stops the car at a red light. “Aren’t we getting kind of old for playgrounds?”

Mingyu shrugs. “Speak for yourself. Come on. Live a little.”

“Okay, but if we get mistaken for paedophiles, it’s your fault.”

It turns out to be a needless statement to make because the area is completely deserted as usual. It was always such an odd place to build a playground, considering it’s not exactly the most family-friendly area. Mingyu makes Wonwoo race him there, all the way to the same swings of yesteryear. Wonwoo’s panting by the time they’re there, struggling to catch his breath. Jesus, he’s completely out of shape.

Mingyu giggles at him. “Poor old grandpa.”

“I’m sorry not all of us can afford high-class gym memberships.”

“Please.” Mingyu rolls his eyes. “You don’t need a gym to stay fit if you wanted to.”

Wonwoo sniffles a little. “Okay, so I haven’t been running at all since college. Sue me.”

They play on the swings in silence, and it’s so much like that one night that Wonwoo finds it almost disconcerting. He remembers stealing glances at Mingyu’s profile back then, thinking how much of a waste it was that a face like that belonged to such an irritating person.

“Hey, Wonwoo?”

He hums in acknowledgement as he slows down the swing so they’re both moving in sync now.

“I saw you went to Pledis. Did you stay in this dorm, too?”

Wonwoo barely manages not to fall backwards off the swing. “Huh?”

“It’s just that,” Mingyu pauses for a moment. “I used to go here a while back for like a couple of semesters, too. I even found myself in some pictures from your Instagram from back then. But it’s so weird… I don’t remember you there at all. Or any of those times.”

“I did use to live there for practically all of my time in college,” Wonwoo concedes carefully. “I met so many people there, though, it’s kind of hard to remember everyone.”

There’s a look of consternation on Mingyu’s face for a second, but it disappears as quickly as it had come as he nods.

“I like this playground,” Mingyu admits. “I don’t really know why. But it’s nicer with you here. Feels right. Like I’ve done this before in another life. With you.”

Wonwoo tries not to freak out at that, schooling his face into the most neutral expression he’s capable of.

“Why? Did you have your first kiss here or something?” Wonwoo goes for what he hopes is a casual, breezy tone.

Mingyu chuckles a bit. “Wouldn’t you like to know. Nah, my first kiss was really lame. Was kind of... sticky? It was at prom with my date back in high school — real cliche stuff. She was wearing this really sticky lip gloss. I was voted king, though, so that was cool.”

Wonwoo has stopped swinging by now. If he swings a second longer, his face is going to freeze.

“Why am I not surprised?”

“That my first kiss was sticky?”

“That you were prom king, genius.”

“Oh. Surely you must’ve been one too, with that unjust face. I bet you left behind a long, long trail of broken hearts.”

“I didn’t even go to mine.”

“What. Why?!”

Wonwoo shrugs. “Maybe because you weren’t in my school.”

Mingyu’s eyes widen at that before he groans. “You’re killing me. You’re really killing me.”

Wonwoo wants to laugh but it comes out more like a strangled gasp because of how cold he is from all the swinging. It makes Mingyu frown as he stands up, removes his dark wool gloves, and feels Wonwoo’s exposed neck. God, his hands are so impossibly warm. How is that even possible? He’s been on the swing for as long as Wonwoo has.

“You’re freezing.”

Mingyu promptly removes his scarf and wraps what has to be the world record holder for the softest scarf ever made around Wonwoo’s neck. He makes sure it covers part of Wonwoo’s face, too, and cups the rest of the exposed skin on Wonwoo’s face with his warm, calloused hands, rubbing gently. Wonwoo only stares up at Mingyu the entire time, afraid of what he’d say if he opens his mouth.

There’s an odd expression on Mingyu’s face that Wonwoo can’t identify. “Why didn’t you say anything?”

“You looked so happy, I-I didn’t want to ruin it.”

“Dumbwoo,” says Mingyu, but it lacks none of the bite from eight years ago. “I’m sorry I didn’t notice it earlier. We should go. I don’t want you to get sick again. I’ll miss you too much, you know.”

Wonwoo burrows his face deeper into Mingyu’s warm scarf, breathing in his comforting scent. It seemed so rough-looking, wrapped around Mingyu’s neck, and dimly, Wonwoo thinks it isn’t quite unlike one of those metaphors from books. His nonsensical train of thought ends when he feels Mingyu’s lips softly press against his forehead.

“Jeon Wonwoo.”

Mingyu’s eyes are dark and intense when Wonwoo looks up, and Wonwoo forgets how to breathe.

“You know where to find me now, though,” he whispers.

That makes Mingyu grin, canines fully on display. He takes Wonwoo’s freezing fingers in his warmer ones and tucks their joined hands into Mingyu’s coat pocket. There’s a small heat pack in it and, oh, that’s probably why Mingyu’s still so warm.

“Yeah, I do.”

 

 

Neither of them is any close to falling ill but Mingyu comes over to Wonwoo’s apartment anyway.

Wonwoo gets so caught up in Mingyu’s warm, gentle kisses, consumed by the heady feeling as he moves to straddle Mingyu’s lap. And if Mingyu shivers at the contact, as if he’s the one who’s cold, arching upwards to meet Wonwoo halfway, it’s really only between the two of them.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one is for everyone who left behind the sweetest comments on the first chapter! I wasn't expecting much so your comments really made my week.

**\- II -**

 

Wonwoo wakes up in the middle of the night, feeling a lot less warm than he would’ve liked. His hands meet fabric where he expects to find Mingyu, and his eyes fly open, panicking — but he breathes again when he finds Mingyu staring at something on a wall.

“Come back to bed,” Wonwoo rasps out.

Mingyu startles a little before turning around. A small smile forms on his face when he sees Wonwoo.

“I’m cold,” Wonwoo complains. “Come back.”

Mingyu laughs softly, but acquiesces anyway, sliding back under the covers next to him. Wonwoo discovers that Mingyu doesn’t spoon per se. Just like the first time Mingyu spent the night with Wonwoo, they’re cuddling almost facing each other and his ridiculously long legs curl into Wonwoo’s. Or maybe it just ends up that way because Wonwoo sleeps on his back. Wonwoo doesn’t really mind either way as long as he’s warm and comfortable — and Mingyu is both.

“You need better heating,” Mingyu whispers.

“Yeah. Been kinda procrastinating. But you’re here and you’re warm all the time so.”

That earns a giggle from Mingyu — the high-pitched kind that Wonwoo secretly likes the most. Wonwoo unthinkingly reacts to the sound by shuffling even closer. They cuddle in almost complete silence for a while, save for the sounds of traffic outside Wonwoo’s apartment. Wonwoo thinks he wouldn’t mind spending all weekends like this.

“Wonwoo?”

Wonwoo’s eyes have fallen shut by now, but he hums in acknowledgement.

“Did I ever tell you what I do for a living?”

“You work for some kids’ show, don’t you?” Wonwoo mumbles sleepily. “You mentioned before. Bong Bong or something? Why?”

“Actually, I’m not just working for the show,” Mingyu admits. “I’m the creator. Bong Bong is way more famous than I am though. I walk down the streets, nobody recognises me. But if it’s Bong Bong, everybody loses their minds. It’s funny.”

“I’m different. I like you more than Bong Bong.”

“You didn’t know me either so.”

Wonwoo almost laughs at the irony. “Nor did I know Bong Bong.”

Mingyu pouts. “That wounds me truly. That’s my child you’re talking about.”

“I mean, I’m not the target demo.” Wonwoo huffs defensively. “I don’t even know what kids do these days, let alone know their choice of entertainment. Maybe Bong Bong would appeal to people like me if like, we knew the creator is handsome. Your show’s publicity team sucks.”

“Oh yeah?” There’s a glint of mischief in Mingyu’s eyes. “You think I’m handsome?”

“Okay, we just had sex. You can calm down.”

Wonwoo feels Mingyu’s warm breath against his head as Mingyu chuckles. “You’re so cute.”

“I’m not cute.” Wonwoo makes an unhappy noise. “There was nothing cute about what we did last night.”

“You are, you are.” Mingyu emphasises his point by rubbing his nose against his until Wonwoo can’t help but breathe out a laugh. “But before I get distracted by how adorable you are, I’ll get back to what I was trying to say. Cartoons aren’t the only media I work with.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah. Not a lot of people know my early stuff.” There’s a pause there that Wonwoo thinks has to be significant somehow. “But I first started as just a regular, small-time artist. And you have one of my pieces on your bedroom wall.”

Wonwoo opens his eyes at that.

His whole apartment is pretty bare, nothing truly of note. For Wonwoo, it’s just a place to sleep in at the end of the day. Soonyoung is always complaining about the lack of decor, besides a few trinkets and pictures of his family and friends, as if it offends the great Soonyoung personally. Wonwoo’s not that much of an art connoisseur, so there’s really only one artwork in the entire place.

It’s a painting of a bespectacled cat.

A friend he had known online since high school painted it for him in his second year of college and he has never been able to bring himself to dispose of it. Gummy actually wanted to gift it to Wonwoo, but Wonwoo fought so hard against accepting something so beautifully made for free. Even as someone who didn’t truly know anything about art, there was something special about the way Gummy painted.

But that was long before he disappeared without so much as a goodbye.

Knowing now that they were, in fact, one and the same has him completely floored.

“I honestly don’t even remember this one,” says Mingyu — and for some reason, the fact that he doesn’t remember their years of friendship actually stings. “But it’s definitely mine. It has to be.”

“You’re Gummyking?” Wonwoo asks quietly.

Mingyu frowns. “Gummyking? I don’t remember using that pseudonym. How do you spell it?”

“G-U-M-M-Y-K-I-N-G. Mostly you just went by Gummy.”

“Oh,” Mingyu is quiet for a beat. “That one uses all the letters in my name. I’ve gone by a few others before, all different combinations of the letters that make up my name. This one is actually the most obvious one. It uses every single letter without any repeats...” Another pause. “Why don’t I remember it?”

Wonwoo has nothing to say to that.

 

 

The artwork doesn’t leave Wonwoo’s mind even after Mingyu leaves.

It’s impossible when it’s right under Wonwoo’s nose.

As soon as Mingyu is out of the apartment, Wonwoo drags himself out of bed and switches on his laptop. It’s lucky he saved all his passwords because it’s been years since he’s used any of the accounts he had to talk to Gummy — or Mingyu.

It turns out to be a complete exercise in futility because he doesn’t have any luck at all with tracking down any of Gummy’s old accounts. They’ve all been deleted. Gone without a trace.

Wonwoo doesn’t have the time to stress over this in front of Mingyu for the next five days, though. He wishes he could, in a twisted way. Wonwoo can’t stop thinking about him. Or the painting. Or Gummy.

Instead, he spends the entire time playing hostage at the studio. Jihoon goes a little crazy whenever he’s working out the final kinks on anything — hell-bent on achieving perfection. The reason they work so well is that Wonwoo usually gets a little bit like that too.

This time, Wonwoo is just… a little bit distracted.

He begins spending nights there at the rate they’re working. Because Jihoon doesn’t leave the studio except to eat, and they have always been, first and foremost, a team. Most days, Wonwoo doesn’t think he would’ve made it this far without Jihoon. Where Wonwoo sometimes wavered, Jihoon knew only tenacity. Surviving the industry together bound them in a way that no amount of words could describe.

They’ve been in it together for so long that he feels guilty about how distracted he has been, on top of keeping something so huge from him, even if Wonwoo is scared to death of what Jihoon has to say about him seeing Mingyu. Maybe Jihoon deserves to know. Wonwoo has been staring at the side of Jihoon’s head for the past few minutes now, trying to figure out how to tell him.

“You wanna tell me what you’ve been hoping to transmit into my brain by the sheer force of your stare?”

Wonwoo bites his lip. “Do you remember Kim Mingyu? You know, from Pledis.”

“You mean my old roommate you were always fighting but then eventually formed a giant crush on when he —”

Wonwoo shushes him even though there is literally nobody else in this studio, besides a sound asleep Soonyoung.

“There’s literally nobody else besides us and sleeping beauty here.” Jihoon deadpans. “What about Mingyu?”

It’s a little suspicious that Soonyoung is sleeping here — on the cheap and uncomfortable couch that Jihoon specifically picked out for those precise attributes so that nobody is ever going to want to stick around. Soonyoung’s breaths are all evened out now, though, so Wonwoo supposes that Jihoon has to be right.

“Well. He’s back. And... I’ve been seeing him for a while.”

Jihoon sighs. “I’m not that much of an actor so here I am, pretending to be shocked.”

“What?”

“Mingyu’s still my friend, you know.” Jihoon glances at Wonwoo, perhaps to gauge his reaction. “And we still talk. I’m always visiting him whenever I’m in LA and I knew he was coming back. Then lately, he’s been talking about this — and I quote — ‘crazy beautiful’ Wonwoo he’s been seeing. At first, I thought it was just a crazy coincidence, maybe it was someone with the same name as yours. But then you started coming into work, progressively more smiley than usual. Especially after lunch. I wondered when you were going to tell me.”

Wonwoo frowns. “You’re telling me you’re not that much of an actor and yet you knew all this time? And you didn’t say anything?”

“Yep.” Jihoon confirms. “I’m happy for you both. Just... be careful, though.”

“What do I have to be careful for?”

Jihoon eyes him warily. “Kim Mingyu radiates chaotic dumb energy. You? You shut people out. That’s what you do.”

“I don’t shut people out,” Wonwoo argues. “Do I shut people out?”

“You already know the answer to that.”

“So you don’t think we should be together.”

“That’s not what I said.” Jihoon takes his eyes off the screen to viciously poke at Wonwoo’s shoulder. It’s unfair how much force has been compacted into such a small person. “Typical of you to selectively listen. You’re good for each other. I’ve honestly never seen Mingyu this happy and you look like you’ve been getting laid. It’s really doing wonders for all that negative energy hanging around you.”

“Ironic, coming from you,” Wonwoo mutters.

“I’m going to do you a favour and pretend I didn’t hear that. I’m just saying. Just be careful not to shut him out.”

“Oh.... So it was advice? Well, it sounded more like a warning.”

“It’s going to be a warning if you don’t shut up and get back to work right about now.”

Wonwoo grins. “I love you too.”

Soonyoung grumbles from where he crashed on the lone couch in the studio. “How come you never freely tell me all these things?”

He should’ve known that there was a reason for Soonyoung’s peculiar choice of a nap spot.

“You clearly weren’t supposed to hear that,” says Jihoon.

“So that was it?” Soonyoung squints at them. “That was why you didn’t want me to tell Jihoon? You were into Mingyu all along?”

Jihoon sends Wonwoo a pointed look, which only intensifies, the harder Wonwoo shakes his head. He doesn’t want to talk about it, damn it.

“Oh, I see.” Soonyoung folds his arms. “Let’s all keep things from Kwon Soonyoung. It’s no big deal.”

Wonwoo sighs in defeat. “Alright. Fine. We kissed in college.”

“What?!”

“It wasn’t just any ol’ kiss,” Jihoon snorts. “It was Mr. Jeon Wonwoo’s first kiss ever. And he was the one who started it.”

“WHAT?!”

“Hey, Soonyoung.” Wonwoo’s voice goes high-pitched as he tries to change the subject. “You remember that one time —”

“Oh no, you don’t, we’re discussing this right now.” Soonyoung is suddenly 100% awake. “Didn’t you get your first kiss in high school? You big liar, I’m pretty sure you said you and Junghyun kissed when we were seniors.”

“I didn’t say that. You came to your own conclusions.”

“B-but! You dated a whole bunch of people in high school! They just kept coming one after the other! How?!”

“I didn’t kiss any of them, okay?” Wonwoo hunches into himself. “Leave me alone.”

“Jeez,” Soonyoung grumbles. “To think that they were all madly in love with you but you didn’t kiss them. And then you let the guy you said you hated kiss you? No, that’s not it, you were the one who kissed him. How does your brain even work?”

Wonwoo looks at Jihoon, hoping against all odds to be rescued because he doesn’t want to talk about this.

This involved Mingyu suddenly becoming markedly less obnoxious in the second semester sometimes after the swing incident. The same one when Mingyu had silently joined him at the swings without even picking a fight. The first RA shift he had that went by without any incident left even the repairman — who was only ever there occasionally — surprised. Everyone had become so accustomed to their fights that it didn’t go unnoticed when Mingyu started leaving Wonwoo alone.

So, if a drunk Mingyu actually started talking to him out of the blue, clad in the most obscene outfit that Wonwoo has ever seen on anyone in real life, Wonwoo doesn’t think anyone should blame him for being human.

But Jihoon’s pointedly ignoring the both of them by now.

“Well?!” Soonyoung prompts.

Wonwoo winces. “We were kind of getting along at one point. Or more specifically, alcohol made us get along. He was insanely attractive and wore nothing under a black blazer that just showed everything everywhere and he just kept. Leaning forward. it was just that one time.”

“Was,” says Jihoon mockingly. “Like he’s not dating him right now.”

Soonyoung gawks at him. “It’s like I never knew you or something.”

Wonwoo buries his face into his hands at the memory. He wasn’t even that drunk — mostly tipsy. They were in the mailroom because he had randomly remembered in the midst of their drunken civil conversation that Mingyu had a parcel to collect. It had seemed like a perfectly good idea to retrieve it for him at the time. When he turned around, parcel in hand, Mingyu was a lot closer than he had realised, whispering Wonwoo’s name hotly. Wonwoo must have lost his grip right there and then because suddenly he found himself wrapped around Mingyu, their lips locked in a searing kiss. One of his hands had even somehow found its way amidst the strands of Mingyu’s unfairly soft hair. Before things truly got out of hand, Wonwoo’s brain cells finally regenerated and he tore himself away from Mingyu. There was no way they were doing anything while they were still drunk — it was a bad idea of the highest order.

The next morning, though, Wonwoo ended up being the only one who remembered everything that transpired between them. Either that, or it just didn’t seem to matter enough to Mingyu, who just went right back to ignoring him.

“So did you end up hooking up?”

“If you mean did I sleep with him, then no.” Wonwoo is staring at the palms of his hands as if they hold the answers to all of his problems as well as the universe. “It was just a kiss.”

“Whew. The tea is hot.” Soonyoung takes a deep breath as he absorbs all of this new information. “Jihoon, you knew all this?”

“Unfortunately.”

“Why didn’t you tell Mingyu? They could’ve gotten together so much sooner.”

Jihoon hesitates for a moment. “I didn’t really know at the time. We only started going for the same classes in our second year, after Mingyu already left, and Wonwoo only said something while he was piss-drunk in our last year. More or less. In that distorted way he did whenever he drank. Either way, I didn’t want to get involved.”

“But you still talk to Mingyu, don’t you?”

“I’m not a busybody — unlike you.”

“Harsh.” Soonyoung sniffs. “What happened to the whole ‘I Don’t Date’ thing?”

“Technically, I didn’t date,” Wonwoo shot back. “I’m pretty sure kissing doesn’t count. Actually... Do you remember that online friend I used to have from high school? Gummy?”

“Gummy?” Jihoon asks curiously.

This time, Soonyoung sits up — ramrod straight. “YES! Finally, something I know and no one else does.” He leaps to his feet and drags Wonwoo out of the studio. “We’re not discussing this in front of anyone else. This is best friend privilege.”

“What the fuck!” Jihoon is screaming now. Wonwoo is sure they’re about to become homicide victims. “Just because you sleep on the job doesn’t mean you should be dragging Wonwoo down with you! Kwon Soonyoung, you —”

“The song sounds great already, relax! Fifteen minutes isn’t going to make this song any less of a hit, bye!”

Soonyoung’s dragging him along at full force now; Wonwoo doesn’t even get a single word in edgewise. All he can do is yelp as his best friend rounds him into a dance studio and scares away a few trainees on their break.

“Okay. Spill.”

“Right. Um.” Wonwoo’s still gasping from trying to keep up with his dumb best friend, who is watching him in sheer anticipation.

The only other time Soonyoung was ever this excited in his life was when he managed to get a picture of Kim Kibum in a cafe in Japan like the low key creep that he is.

Wonwoo clears his throat. “So… Apparently Gummy is actually Mingyu.”

Soonyoung smacks the vinyl flooring excitedly, startling Wonwoo. “Gummy is Mingyu? How?”

“You remember that one painting I got from Gummy, right? That was Mingyu’s.”

“Holy shit. What is your life.” Soonyoung stares at him in disbelief. “I remember how upset you were when he ghosted. That means you and him have practically been on and off for like over a decade. He was practically your online boyfriend okay, I’ve seen your gross flirty interactions.”

Wonwoo colours. “He was not my boyfriend. I didn’t even know his real name or how he looked like. And there was no absolutely flirting.”

“I don’t even know why you’re fighting this.” Soonyoung shakes his head. “You really think I was going to forget you telling me that you sent him a literal dick pic in your second year of college. And that he sent one back.”

Wonwoo feels his head swim from the sheer force of the upward rush of blood at that memory. He can’t believe Soonyoung still remembers, especially since Wonwoo had fought so hard to do the exact opposite. Wonwoo was just trying to show Gummy a picture of a cat he’d befriended — the same one that Mingyu ends up painting — and sent the wrong picture. He still deeply regrets taking that dick pic on a whim.

“That was an accident.” Wonwoo mumbles. “He doesn’t even remember the piece anyway. I doubt he’d remember the online me.”

“I don’t think anyone’s going to forget an alleged accidental dick pic.”

“Soonyoung. It’s a random forum on the internet. That’s where intelligence gets put out to pasture.”

“I can’t believe I haven’t met him yet.” Soonyoung completely ignores him. “It’s like he’s your destiny or something. Tied together by a red string of fate. Soulmates. Wolves. Otters. Lovebirds. Lobsters.”

“Please stop talking.”

“I have to meet him,” Soonyoung insists. His eyes are positively wild now and Wonwoo is vaguely concerned about the possibility of him losing consciousness. “This is like the great love of your life. Please tell me Jun hasn’t met him either. At least not recently.”

“Well. About that…”

Soonyoung looks completely betrayed. “Oh, come on!”

Wonwoo kicks the edge of Soonyoung’s shoe lightly. “Hey. You do know that you’re my best friend too, right? It’s not just Jun.”

“I mean.” Soonyoung sighs. “Jihoon’s right, you know? You shut people out, and it kind of sucks when you do it to me, too. Sometimes, you tell everyone else things that I have to squeeze out of you. I already feel like I missed out so much by living in Japan for so long. I found you first before all those other hoes did.”

“I’m sorry.” Wonwoo shifts so that he’s sitting close enough to Soonyoung to bump their shoulders together. “I don’t mean to shut anyone out, especially not you. Jun used his spare key to get in and Mingyu happened to be there. You know. Half the time, I don’t even know what I’m doing or if any of this even makes sense.”

Soonyoung’s eyes soften. “Do you like Mingyu?”

“What do you mean?”

“Do you like Mingyu?” Soonyoung presses.

Wonwoo bites his lip. “I really, really like him.”

“Then that’s all the answer you need, right? Nobody knows what they’re doing or if anything’s going to work out. All we can do is give it a shot. And if it works, it works. This thing with Mingyu could be a mistake that ends up in a dumpster fire for all we know. But he might also be the best damn thing that’s ever happened to you. Be honest, show him you care, be the best damn thing that’s ever happened to him.”

“Soonyoung. You really are my best friend.”

He glows at the statement. “You’re my best friend too.”

“We’re ride or die, right?” Wonwoo leans on him. “Bros before hoes. We even have matching highlighter tattoos from back in high school. Water might have washed it all away, but it remains in our hearts to this very day. I love you, okay?”

“I love it when you get on my level and go all corny. Love you too.”

Wonwoo nudges his shoulder again. “I should be getting back. You realise Jihoon’s gonna kill us for this. He’s really been on edge.”

Soonyoung waves him away. “I’ll just offer to suck his dick later or something. You’re on your own though.”

“Huh?” Wonwoo stares at him in confusion. Last he heard, whatever it was that happened with him, Jihoon, and Seokmin ended a long time ago. “Wasn’t that weird, freaky thing with the three of you just a one-time thing?”

“Uh.” Soonyoung looks caught now. “Um.”

 

 

Mingyu offers to cook when Wonwoo is finally free but Wonwoo has never been to a penthouse suite before and he’s curious.

“Come here already,” Mingyu complains from the couch. “As cute as your butt is, I missed the whole of you.”

“Just a second, I just wanna see if I can find my apartment from here. Come help me find it.”

Mingyu groans. “Please don’t make me go there.”

That makes Wonwoo turn around. “Why not?”

“Ugh. This is embarrassing,” Mingyu covers his face. “But you’re going to find out sooner or later anyway. So. I’m scared of heights. Scratch that. I’m fucking terrified of heights. I do not like heights.”

Wonwoo stares at him. “Why are you even staying in the penthouse if you’re afraid of heights?”

“I’m fine as long I don’t look.” Mingyu waves a hand. “Kind of.”

“Your bathroom is literally all glass walls.”

Mingyu groans again. “I just keep my eyes trained on the floor the whole time. It’s fine, honestly. I left it too late and every other place was full by the time Seungcheol could book one for me. Now it’s going to look stupid if I ask for a different room.”

“You can stay in my apartment if you want,” Wonwoo offers quietly. “I mean it’s on the ground floor so you can stay there.”

Mingyu looks at Wonwoo in awe. “Really?”

“Really.”

He doesn’t expect Mingyu to stay with him for long, sure that Mingyu’s going to get tired of being around him all the time.

Except it stretches on for another day. And another day.

They have their first fight ever on their fifth day over condensation on the coffee table of all things.

Wonwoo sulks in his bedroom, reading a book without actually turning a single page before Mingyu bursts into the room. He excitedly announces that he’s going to use coasters from now on and that he’s even cleaned up the whole living room, can they please kiss and make up, so they can officially say that they made it through their first fight ever already.

He’s never met anyone so excited about a fight before.

But if it means a clean apartment and Mingyu making him come, Wonwoo’s not complaining.

“What are we?” Wonwoo asks right after.

Mingyu’s still catching his breath next to him. “What — what do you mean?”

“I mean… are we, you know. Or — I don’t know. Let’s pretend I said nothing.”

“Let’s not,” says Mingyu instead, looking so determined suddenly. “Tell me what you mean.”

Wonwoo is about to hide his face into the pillow when Mingyu reaches out for Wonwoo’s cheek.

“What did you mean?”

“Are we a thing?” Wonwoo whispers.

The most brilliant smile in the history of smiles forms on Mingyu’s face. “Wonwoo, I was always yours.”

Before either of them knows it, Mingyu’s there for nearly a month. Eventually, Mingyu learns that Wonwoo gets so engrossed in his games that he forgets to eat sometimes. He takes to feeding Wonwoo ramyeon as he plays and rests his head on Wonwoo’s lap when he’s done. Wonwoo learns that Mingyu cleans whenever he’s upset over something he doesn’t want to bother anyone with and a simple comforting touch is all it really takes for him to open up.

But Wonwoo doesn’t even get to enjoy more than that before Mingyu sits him down for some bad news — Mingyu has to return to Los Angeles the next day. Wonwoo doesn’t think he hides his disappointment very well.

Part of him knows that he can’t just expect Mingyu to put his entire life on hold but the other half of him just doesn’t care. Wonwoo really wants his boyfriend to stay. Because that’s what Mingyu is.

“I’m sorry,” Mingyu whispers. “But I can’t think of any more excuses and I think Seungcheol is tired of changing my schedule, extending my hotel stay, and cancelling airline tickets for so long. He looked ready to crawl out of my phone screen just to strangle me.”

Wonwoo nearly drops his thankfully empty cup of coffee right there and then. That’s how Wonwoo finds out that Mingyu has been gradually extending his stay just to be with Wonwoo. He actually did put his entire life on hold for him — for months on end.

“When were you supposed to leave Korea?!”

Mingyu smiles sheepishly. “Right after my sister’s wedding?”

Wonwoo stares at him. “Mingyu, that was ages ago. Just how rich are you? That penthouse must cost you a bomb.”

“I think I got a good deal when I just ended up buying the hotel. Seungcheol said it’s doing really well.”

“What?!”

“I mean, I was staying for so long so I talked to Seungcheol about it and figured it’d save cost in the long run.”

“Normal people check out of hotels as soon as possible to save cost. Not buy them! And you’re scared of heights.”

Mingyu groans and hides his face behind his hands.

They stay like that for a while, Mingyu with his face covered and Wonwoo just staring at him in disbelief.

“Please just check out of that penthouse — wait no, your penthouse now. You’re not going there anymore. Oh my god, Mingyu, you’re scared of heights, why did you do this to yourself.”

Mingyu’s laughter is practically dripping self-deprecation. Wonwoo isn’t going to accept that, so he sighs and pulls Mingyu closer until the tension leaves his body again.

“Do it for me, okay?” Wonwoo offers.

Everything is right again when Mingyu smiles.

“Okay.”

 

 

He follows Mingyu to the airport the day he leaves. Mingyu puts on saddest puppy eyes and Wonwoo doesn’t have in it him to resist. It’s there that Minghao, who has been trailing behind them, finally speaks directly to Wonwoo after Mingyu has left them to go to the gents.

“How serious are you about him?” Minghao asks.

“What?”

Minghao sighs. “I shouldn’t be saying this. But Mingyu — something happened in the past and it wasn’t good for him. At all. Honestly, Jeon? I don’t like this. Whatever this is between you two. I’d rather you not ask him what happened because he’s gone through so much to put it all behind him. If you’re just fucking with him, leave him now. I don’t want to see him crash again.”

Wonwoo goes quiet and stays that way even after Mingyu comes back and they’re headed towards the departure gate together.

“Are you going to miss me?” Mingyu asks with a small laugh.

Wonwoo smiles ruefully. “Do you seriously not know the answer to that?”

“I’ll come back as soon as I can, okay?” Mingyu promises. He traces the outline of Wonwoo’s face with his hands as if he’s trying to commit the very slope of his nose to memory. “They don’t actually need me there.”

“Okay,” is all Wonwoo says in a small voice.

He can’t help but lean into Mingyu’s touch but pulls back a little when he feels Minghao’s stare burning a hole into the back of his head, his words ringing.

“You okay?” Mingyu looks at him, concerned.

“Yeah. I’m okay. Call me when you get there?”

“You don’t even have to ask.”

 

 

Time seems to stand still without Mingyu around.

The first night, Wonwoo ends up fully awake in bed for hours on end. Eventually, he gives up and spends the rest of it playing League of Legends, eyes glancing at his phone every other minute, waiting anxiously for one name to pop up. He only manages to get a couple of hours of sleep before he has to leave for work after Mingyu finally calls to let him know that he’s arrived at LAX in one piece.

Wonwoo knows he’s being ridiculous. He could sleep just fine before Mingyu re-entered his life.

And yet, at lunchtime, his car is already en route towards the cafe even though he knows that Mingyu won’t be there either. It stings more than it should but he just misses Mingyu so much. Wonwoo curses under his breath and goes anyway.

What — or who — he doesn’t expect to see there is Jeonghan.

Wonwoo decides that he’s going to ask for his slice of cake and coffee to go this time, reasoning to himself that Mingyu isn’t there anyway. It’s most definitely not because of Jeonghan. At all. It’s probably just pure coincidence that he’s here. He’s so close to the exit when Jeonghan notices him seconds later, and waves him over with a small smile before pointing at the empty seat in front of him.

He gets this feeling that Jeonghan isn’t the type to take no for an answer.

“How are you?” Jeonghan’s smile seems genuine, as smiles go.

“I’m good,” Wonwoo says carefully.

“You’d prefer seeing Mingyu here instead, wouldn’t you?” Jeonghan laughs and Wonwoo’s face burns. “It’s cute how much you two like each other. It’s like something out of a movie.”

“So you don’t dislike me?” Wonwoo blurts out.

Jeonghan watches him with keen eyes. “People are always ready to assume I don’t like them. Maybe it’s my face? No, it can’t be. I have a very angelic face. But no, I don’t dislike you. Minghao is another story altogether. He hates you.”

Wonwoo can feel his face fall at that.

“Minghao is just extremely protective of Mingyu,” says Jeonghan. “We all are. But he’s on another level.”

“Were they ever —”

“No. You have nothing to worry there. I’m surprised, though.”

“What do you mean?”

“I’m surprised you haven’t asked me what I’m doing here.”

“I — it’s a public space.”

“But why here?” Jeonghan presses.

Wonwoo feels like he’s missing something here.

Jeonghan shakes his head. “Alright. I’m here because I wanted to see it for myself. Without any other distractions.”

“See what?” Wonwoo asks, confused and, somehow, afraid.

“I wanted to see,” Jeonghan continues. “How you came back to this one cafe — again and again — even though your office isn’t the least bit nearby. Mingyu hasn’t checked for himself yet because well. He seems to be quite preoccupied.”

Jeonghan looks at him meaningfully.

Wonwoo doesn’t breathe.

“But I know,” Jeonghan continues. “I know that you went well out of your way just to see him again against every other thing I’ve ever heard about you. I had a feeling you’d come back here when Mingyu finally leaves for LA, too. And I know that you knew him. I know you never got along with Mingyu, the loud freshman who didn’t know how to relax around you.”

“How—?” Wonwoo finally manages to breathe out.

“I wanted to see how you’d react to that, too.” Jeonghan’s expression turns almost contemplative. “There was still a chance that you might not remember him. But that look on your face just told me you did. You remembered the boy who drove you mad in college. And yet you treated him with kindness the day you and him reunited and even came back. Over and over again. Why, I asked myself.”

Wonwoo only sits there quietly.

“You liked him even back then, didn’t you?” Jeonghan maintains a frighteningly calm stare. “He drove you insane, but maybe you couldn’t help it. Or maybe there were moments when you two weren’t trying to kill each other. Or maybe it was a little bit of both. Then he disappeared. For eight years, you moved on. Dated others. But he came back like some giant boomerang, and you were afraid you’d never see him again. So you came back, hoping he’d be there.”

The air in the cafe feels oppressive now and Wonwoo feels like running. But Jeonghan’s gaze seems to pin Wonwoo to his seat.

“It’s not —”

“I don’t think it’s in your interests to lie to me,” says Jeonghan, sighing. “I’m probably the only friend of his who isn’t against you seeing him.”

“You’re not?” Wonwoo feels his hands shaking. “But you know all that and —” He stops suddenly.

Jeonghan smiles sadly. “Mingyu shouldn’t have done all the things he did in college. I can’t blame you for that and — this was my fault. How could I be angry at you when it was my fault? I should’ve known. There’s also something you did that I think you genuinely don’t remember, something that made Mingyu leave the next day.”

“What don’t I remember?” asks Wonwoo in a hushed voice. “Why is any of this your fault?”

“I’m not sure I can tell you yet,” says Jeonghan, and he just sounds exhausted now. “Don’t tell Mingyu any of this just yet.”

“What?” Wonwoo stands up, too. “I don’t understand.”

Jeonghan shakes his head. “I just came to confirm my theory of your side of the story, but I really do need more info before I can really say anything. I think Mingyu’s going to try to be back next week.” He picks up his coat from the seat next to him. “I don’t think he’s ever been this excited about getting on a plane so quickly. You must know how afraid he is of heights.”

He then takes out what looks like a business card and slides it across the table towards Wonwoo.

 

Dr. _Yoon Jeonghan, MD_  
_CERTIFIED PSYCHIATRIST_

 

There’s another number written neatly in the blank space underneath his title.

“Are you—?”

“His psychiatrist?” Jeonghan sighs tiredly. “No. That would be extremely unethical. I’m just here because I care about my friend. But there are some things I know… and I don’t know how much I should worry.”

Jeonghan looks at him meaningfully. “Send me your number to that one. We’ll figure this out.”

Wonwoo doesn’t move for about an hour after Jeonghan leaves.

 

 

He spends the next few days cooped up at home, trying to make sense of everything that Jeonghan has told him.

Naturally, he achieves nothing.

It’s a Sunday when he finally leaves his house — only at Soonyoung’s behest — to be with the rest of them at Jihoon’s place. But where Jihoon and Soonyoung are laughing over something Jun just said, Wonwoo has been stewing silently all by himself in the corner of the couch, occasionally glancing at Jihoon. He knows something. Wonwoo’s sure of it. He has to know.

“Is there anything else about Mingyu that you’ve been hiding from me?”

Jun and Soonyoung stare at Wonwoo, taken aback by his sudden outburst.

Jihoon slowly places his bottle of beer on the table. “What makes you say that?”

“I don’t know. I don’t know anything anymore.”

“Wonwoo. I don’t know what you don’t know if you don’t tell me what you do know.”

So he does. He spills every single thing that he can remember about Mingyu — from both times on the swings, all the way to Jeonghan’s cryptic meeting. His voice is mostly the only one that fills the room for a while. It’s mostly Jihoon who interrupts at certain junctures to ask him to clarify some things. For once, even Soonyoung doesn’t say anything.

“Jeonghan said there was something I don’t remember.” Wonwoo wrings his hands. “But I don’t know what.”

Jihoon frowns. “Okay. This, I swear I don’t know. What did you do, Jeon Wonwoo?”

“I didn’t do anything! It can’t have been the kiss either. That happened way before he left and Jeonghan said it was something that made him leave the next day.”

“I’m probably not supposed to say this,” Jihoon mutters. “But fuck it, here it goes: Mingyu liked you first. He has always liked you. He liked you so much, he didn’t even have to tell me for me to know. He actually did all that stupid shit just to get you to pay attention to him again. The first time you came to our room because of a noise complaint? That was genuinely unplanned. But all those other times? All planned. Every single one of them. If you were annoyed, imagine living with him.”

“You’re lying. Make that make sense.”

“I’m really not. There was obviously a reason why you were the only one he picked on. And it’s as stupidly elementary as a crush. I actually snapped when he was packing up and told him on a limb just before he left that you liked him too. I didn’t even know if you did, I was just tired at that point. I wanted him to finally do something about it. But he just started crying. I didn’t realise it had somehow twisted into something else that ended up with both of you hurt. And now, it only makes sense that it’s probably the one thing you don’t remember.”

Wonwoo grunts in frustration. It feels like he has had the same long, continuous headache ever since Mingyu came back into his life. “But what was it? And how does he not remember me? God. I think I kind of measured everyone else I ever dated next to Mingyu.”

“Well, it would explain why you rejected everybody this bozo,” Jihoon points his thumb at Soonyoung, “And this other bozo,” he points at Jun this time. “Threw in your direction. Didn’t you complain your last ex was too short? It was such a lame reason to break up with someone.”

Soonyoung protests at the insult and Jun leans back into the couch, laughing.

“And that one guy whose teeth were apparently too straight. Oh, and that one —”

They’re all openly clowning him now and Wonwoo tries to laugh, too, but it just comes out as a sob instead. Just like that, the floodgates that Wonwoo never realised he tried to hold at bay finally burst open.

“Hey now,” Jihoon pulls him into a hug. “He’s coming home next week, isn’t he? Why are you crying?”

“I just don’t understand. Any of this. If he used to like me so much, why does he remember you and Jun — but not me?”

Jihoon goes silent for a while, patting Wonwoo’s back a bit before pulling back and fishing out his phone. Wonwoo catches Jihoon exchange a meaningful look with Jun before he hands Wonwoo his phone.

“I’m really not supposed to be showing you this,” Jihoon sighs. “Jun didn’t even know about this until he found out about you and Mingyu at your apartment and asked me. But I can’t keep this from you anymore. This is the one last thing that I know and you have to promise me not to freak out.”

Wonwoo doesn’t say anything. Something tells him that he can’t promise anything.

The screen shows a white card, lettered as such in Korean:

 

_Dear Mr. Lee,_

_Kim Mingyu has had Jeon Wonwoo erased from his memory. Please never mention their relationship again._

_Thank you._  
_LACUNA INC._

 

 

 

Jeonghan picks up on the first ring.

“You have to tell me everything,” Wonwoo gets right to the point. “Please.”

“I guess it might help to start with Minghao,” Jeonghan begins. “Since he was there from the beginning. Minghao didn’t stay at the dorm, so it’s probably not all that surprising if you don’t remember him. But he did remember you. Because there were only a couple of times Mingyu dragged him to dorm events and yet it was enough for him to see how crazy he was about you. He and Mingyu have been thick as thieves since high school, so of course, Minghao knew. The only thing that he didn’t know was how you felt.”

“Did you know Jihoon too?”

“I don’t know him personally, no. But I know of him.”

“Tell me,” Wonwoo pleads. “Jeonghan, please. What’s wrong with Mingyu? Tell me exactly what’s wrong with him. What does it have to do with Lacuna? There’s nothing on the internet about it.”

He barely catches Jeonghan curse.

“How do you know about Lacuna?” Jeonghan asks.

There’s a tremor in his voice that Wonwoo doesn’t miss.

“Jihoon showed me this one card,” says Wonwoo. “Mingyu has had me removed from his memory? What does that mean?”

“It means… exactly what it says on the tin.” Jeonghan sighs. “I don’t really want to get into detail but they specialise at removing unwanted memories. Lacuna is untraceable because they operate purely by word of mouth. You won’t find them on the internet. Apparently, it’s set up that way so their clients don’t even remember they’ve had their memories wiped when it’s all over. He doesn’t remember anything about you from your time in Pledis because those memories have been wiped from his brain. You ceased to exist in his past.”

“You’re joking.”

“Do you honestly think I’m joking? The first time you met Mingyu at that cafe — how did he act? What did he say? Is there anything else afterwards that didn’t seem right? Think of the way we all acted around you.”

Wonwoo picked at the stray thread on his sweater. “You looked at me like you were waiting for me to fuck up.”

“I was looking at you,” Jeonghan pauses for a beat. “To see if you would trigger Mingyu’s memories in any way. If you were going to say something that they somehow missed in the memory wipe. But he wasn’t the only one who didn’t want to remember, was he?”

Memory wipe? It sounds so much like something right out of a science fiction movie; there is no way technology of this kind actually exists. The notion makes Wonwoo’s stomach roil.

“Why would he do such a thing?” Wonwoo asks.

“The same reason he made you mediate 202 noise violations. Mingyu has always been sort of a mess. He doesn’t know what to do when he’s overwhelmed. He’s better now, learned to take things a little slower. Age can do that, I guess. But he was still nervous and scared around you, wasn’t he?”

Wonwoo releases a shaky breath. That part made sense, too much sense.

Jeonghan sighs. “This was my fault. Mingyu knew about Lacuna at the time because I was complaining to him about how much I hated Mierzwiak’s work. I still hate it. A couple of my old classmates were working with him back then. He must’ve stolen one of their contacts. I only found out when he was in the final few stages. I begged him not to go through with it, but he just wouldn’t be deterred. He was determined to forget you. So this was actually my fault. In a way.”

“Is it that damaging?” asks Wonwoo in a small voice.

“Mierzwiak claims it’d be something like a wild night of drinking. Nothing he’d miss.” Jeonghan huffs out a humourless laugh. “Mingyu cried every other week after the procedure. Anyone would break down if they ever lose such a large chunk of his memories overnight like he did. He wanted to forget you so badly but it just made him worse. Minghao didn’t take it very well.”

Wonwoo’s shoulders slump. He’s beginning to understand why Seungkwan and Minghao have been cold towards him.

“The procedure was clearly effective at erasing memories,” Jeonghan continues. “I have some unsupported hypotheses you probably won’t even be interested in, but once he saw you, obviously he was going to learn all the little things about you that made him fall for you all over again. Think, Wonwoo. Has he ever said anything kind of weird? Because he has, to us.”

“I don’t know.”

“He told us that he felt some kind of instant connection with you. That never happens to Mingyu. It can actually take him weeks, even months, before he realises he’s attracted to anyone. We were even more worried about him the moment he mentioned your name. So think about it. Really think about it.”

“Mingyu did say… he said something like he didn’t recognise someone who went to Pledis.”

“He told me that, too. God, I can’t remember her name now. There’s something about him — I don’t know if he’s ever told you yet. He never forgets a face. Names, probably, but he’s such a visually-driven person, he never forgets faces. It scared him when that happened.”

That’s something Wonwoo can relate to. Fuck. What the hell is going on?

“Minghao and Seungkwan are going to be tough on you,” Jeonghan continues when Wonwoo remains silent, lost in his own thoughts. “That’s not even including the fact that Mingyu himself just isn’t going to be easy to be with.”

“We… we should tell him the truth,” Wonwoo finally says.

“I was a little afraid you’d say that.”

“Don’t you think he deserves to know?”

“I honestly don’t know what to do anymore,” Jeonghan confesses. “I think I’ve tried everything at this point. All I know is that Mingyu’s not the impulsive boy he used to be anymore. And I know it’s not my place but I’m hoping so much you’ll give him that second chance. If you care about him, fight for him. Please.”

 

 

Wonwoo barely puts down his phone when the screen lights up again.

“Mingyu? It’s, what, 5 am in LA? Why are you up so early?”

All Wonwoo can hear on the other end is Mingyu breathing — far too heavily. It sends a wave of trepidation down Wonwoo’s spine.

“Baby, please talk to me.”

“Wonwoo,” Mingyu rasps out. “I’m in Korea.”

“What? But you said — where are you now? I’m coming for you.”

“Airport. Terminal 2.”

“Okay. Don’t go anywhere. I’m coming.”

Wonwoo has never been that great of a driver. He’s not the worst since but he’s not a natural at it either. This time, though — this time, for once, he feels perfectly in control. He’s hyper-aware of the traffic the whole journey, bent on getting there safely, on the need to get to Mingyu. His gut is screaming at him — something is wrong.

And when Wonwoo does find Mingyu, he finds him standing outside the airport by himself, stock still.

“Mingyu!” Wonwoo rushes towards him. “How long have you been here?”

He stares at Wonwoo, but it almost doesn’t seem as if he’s really looking.

Wonwoo reaches for him with his hand and touches Mingyu’s cheek gently. “Mingyu? What’s wrong?”

Mingyu breathes out just then as if he has finally just noticed him there. “Wonwoo.”

“I’m taking you back to my place.” Wonwoo strokes his face just once before leading him back to his car. Oh god, Mingyu’s fingers are absolutely freezing. He’s never freezing. Why is he freezing?

They’re about a few blocks away from home when Mingyu finally speaks again. “I’ve got this recording. A girl sent it to me. She said I’d want to know the truth. That it’ll make everything make sense again.”

“What?” Wonwoo takes his eyes off the road for a second to check on him. “What recording?”

Mingyu fumbles with the phone in his hand and taps on something that plays a tinny recording of a voice, that Wonwoo immediately recognises as Mingyu’s, saying something in what sounds like English. Wonwoo doesn’t understand English. This fact seems to dawn on Mingyu because he pauses it again.

“Forget it, I — you don’t even understand English. What am I even doing?”

“Mingyu, what —”

“I’ve listened to this god knows how many fucking times now,” Mingyu soldiers on, now, almost talking to himself. “Over and over. It’s telling me, no, that’s my voice — I’m saying that I was there to erase you. I still don’t even know what that means. But I knew you. Jeon Wonwoo. I knew you. Pledis University. The pancakes. All those noise violations? The playground. I even knew you since high school. You were my online friend with the cat obsession. I had all these years with you and I don’t even remember.”

“Mingyu —”

“It shouldn’t make any sense. I don’t forget. Wonwoo, I remember every single face I ever meet. It’s not possible, so how could I forget yours? I thought maybe it’s some kind of prank — some kind of sick joke. There are voice actors who can perfectly emulate someone else’s voice. But you know? I remember years ago, I looked through my portfolio archives, Seungcheol keeps them all digitalised and organised… but there were three whole years without anything. Nothing. I asked Seungcheol and he didn’t even have an answer for me. I looked at Google calendar and rationalised, you know, maybe I just stopped using it for a while, it happens, but — There have been so many instances in my life when I’d just draw a complete blank. And I was the one who wanted to forget them. I wanted to forget you.”

He’s breathing hard now. Wonwoo has never parked a car so quickly in his life. When he turns to look at Mingyu, his face has turned ashen.

“Mingyu.” Wonwoo puts the car into parking gear and reaches for him then, embracing him, and strokes Mingyu’s hair. “Okay, it’s okay. You’re going to be okay. Count with me.”

He lowers the window on Mingyu’s side with his free hand, letting in fresh air.

Together, they count slowly for about half an hour, until Mingyu’s breathing is steady once again.

“Let’s go back home, okay? Gotta get you warm.”

Mingyu says nothing else the rest of the time, only watches in silence as Wonwoo turns the kettle on. He’s got some of his own clean clothes he’d left behind and a blanket wrapped around him, and Wonwoo can’t. He can’t keep it from him. All the lies and half-truths.

“I found out,” Wonwoo admits. “I know. And I remembered you. I didn’t want to admit it but the longer I kept it from you, the worse it got.”

Mingyu stares up at Wonwoo. “What?”

Wonwoo looks away. “They just told me about this a few days ago. Jihoon and Jeonghan. I couldn’t believe it too at first. But then everything started to make sense. I’m the only one you don’t remember. You remember everything else. Everyone else. Jun, Jihoon, everything else about Pledis. I’m the only one you forgot. You don’t even remember the painting.”

“Painting?”

“The one on my bedroom wall.”

“Oh. The one the recording says I sent you...” Mingyu trails off, face turning pale again. “You gave me your address and real name. That’s why I — So it’s real. And you knew.”

“Mingyu, I-I only found out literally a few days ago. The whole time, I was confused—”

Wonwoo wants to reach his arm out and hold Mingyu but before he can even formulate a response, Mingyu is standing up shakily.

“I need some time to think. I… yeah.”

Before Wonwoo can even react, Mingyu’s already at the door, shrugging his coat back on and he’s out of Wonwoo’s apartment. Wonwoo’s just standing there, in stunned silence. It’s never really happened before, not like this, but somehow, it still feels like deja vu.

 

_If you care about him, fight for him._

 

And Wonwoo does. Fuck, he really does. He loves Mingyu so much. He’s come to care so much about Mingyu and he’s not ready to give it all up. But he knows just what to do this time, something he now wishes he had done eight years ago.

He goes after Mingyu.

As the freezing cold night air fills his lungs, he thinks, not for the first time about how out of shape he is. He can’t lose Mingyu. Not again. So Wonwoo keeps running as fast as his skinny legs can carry him until he sees Mingyu just ahead of him. Mingyu’s eyes go so wide when Wonwoo blocks his path.

“I’m sorry I lied to you,” Wonwoo chokes the words out. “I’m sorry I lied that I don’t remember you. I’m sorry I don’t remember what I did that made you go through with the procedure. But I’m not sorry for how I feel about you. Fuck, Mingyu. I’m crazy about you.”

Wonwoo’s legs are shaking, close to giving way.

“I can’t undo the past,” Wonwoo gasps out. “I can’t promise that I’m going to be anything but the reclusive gamer and pessimist that I presently am. But Mingyu, every time I look at you — every time I think of you — all I want to do is offer you my future.”

It hurts Wonwoo just to look at Mingyu because he’s shaking now. Wonwoo has just poured out his whole heart to him; it’s just lying there on the pavement for Mingyu to see. He could stomp on it, throw it to the dogs — he could do anything he wanted with his heart.

This has stretched on for eight long years and, for once, Wonwoo wants to do it right.

All he can hear in his head are his friends, telling him Mingyu is the best thing that has ever happened to him. And god he doesn’t want to shut Mingyu out. So he forces himself to keep looking up at Mingyu, whose face crumples as tear tracks mar his handsome face.

Wonwoo feels his own face fall at that, he’s made Mingyu cry. But then Mingyu throws himself at him, and this time, neither of them fall down.

“I’m crazy about you too,” Mingyu whispers, holding onto Wonwoo. “It felt like something in me clicked the moment I saw you at the cafe. I felt… drawn to you. I thought I was going crazy — how could I fall for someone that quickly? I don’t think I’ve ever felt that way about anyone before.”

“Okay. Okay.” Wonwoo strokes his hair. “Let’s not break up. Not until we’ve really given this a shot.”

“I wasn’t going to.” Mingyu squeezes him harder as if Wonwoo’s the one who disappeared from his life. “I just needed to… go back to my hotel...” Mingyu trails off, and pulls away with a disoriented look on his face. “No, I bought my ticket at the airport and rushed here, I didn’t — I didn’t get a place to stay.”

“You will always have a place to stay.”

Mingyu makes a confused noise.

“My apartment is,” Wonwoo pauses. “It isn’t the most amazing. The heater’s broken half the time, and I’ve been spending all my time working and the rest of it on games. But it’s yours if you want.”

“Why? I sounded awful. I tormented you. Why do you want to be with me?”

“Because I love you,” says Wonwoo, honestly. “You — the way you are now. You’re so good to me, you're always good to me.”

“There was this woman,” Mingyu continues, shaking his head as if he can’t accept anything Wonwoo has just said. “I met her in Prague while she was on her honeymoon. She recognised me, but I didn’t, so I figured maybe it was a fan at first. But then she said we knew each other in Pledis. And it scared me so much that I didn’t remember her.”

“Jeonghan told me you never forget a face.”

“What else did he tell you?”

Wonwoo shakes his head. “I think that’s it.”

“Do you remember anyone named Nayoung?”

“Nayoung?” Wonwoo frowns. “There was this one girl everyone thought I was hooking up with… She even called me out for kissing her the next day, I almost ruined her chance of being with this guy she really liked… oh.”

Wonwoo’s eyes widen as realisation dawns on him. That was what he couldn’t remember. Had Mingyu seen him kiss Nayoung?

“You kissed Nayoung,” Mingyu fills in the blanks. “That’s what it — what I said. I was going to tell you how I felt about you and the whole truth. I was about to tell you that I was Gummy. That I found out who you are. But then you whispered to me that you didn’t want to date me before you kissed Nayoung standing right next to me. The girl everyone thought was it for you. So I just… I guess I jumped to conclusions.”

God, Jeon Wonwoo really fucking did the stupidest shit under the influence. “There’s a reason why I don’t drink anymore, Mingyu, not even cider. The stupidest shit happens whenever I drink and it always seems to end in disaster. My brain thinks one thing, and it comes out all wrong, even though it’s usually half-right, like — like some sort of broken telephone. I think I said that because I didn’t want to date anyone at all. It wasn’t you. Not specifically. I wanted to take my education seriously. But god, I was so attracted to you. My alcohol-addled brain probably thought I was kissing you. You were my first kiss, you know?”

“I don’t remember any of this,” Mingyu chokes out. “I don’t — I can’t remember.”

Wonwoo tightens his arms around him, kissing Mingyu’s neck softly. “It doesn’t matter. You remember me the way I am now. We’re together now, aren’t we? We have new memories together, you and I. That’s more important. We can keep making new memories, too, without all the stupid things we did when we were young. I literally screamed at you in front of everyone, you know?”

Mingyu breathes out a laugh. “I probably deserved it.”

“Yeah. You kind of did. We both did stupid things.”

 

 

“Tell me our story,” says Mingyu later. His voice is a little muffled, curled up against Wonwoo’s side, the way he was always meant to. “From the beginning. I want to remember everything. Well. I wanna know it anyway, I can’t exactly... remember... Tell me your side of the story, and parts of mine that you do know.”

Wonwoo shuffles under the cover so that his arm is around Mingyu. He’s really going to have to fix the heater soon, especially now that he wants Mingyu to stay, but for now, they’ve got enough warmth to share between them.

“I don’t remember when we met,” Wonwoo confesses. “I met so many people that first week, and I was so nervous. So for me, it started when you entered what Soonyoung calls The Wonwoo Book of Records for making me resolve 202 whole noise complaints — just because you wanted to see me. And then slowly, eight years later, I wanted to see you too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was actually based loosely on the movie Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. I didn't want to tag it because it would spoil everything. If you haven't seen it yet, you gotta watch it y'all. Thanks so much for reading uwu


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